High school student-athletes make a commitment to do more than just the minimum. And that's not to say that doing well in high school academically is not an impressive accomplishment – it is. But for a young person to decide to do more than that, to take on the responsibilities that come with being a high school athlete means they are willing to do a lot more than what they're required to do to successfully finish high school. They're willing to take time to work out, get and stay in shape, challenge themselves to learn new skills, practice with their team, and put themselves out there competing in public.
It's impressive, and if you're the parent or guardian of a high school athlete, you know how much it means to them to be able to compete with their classmates for their school. You also know that it's not something they do alone; you've been a big part of helping them meet their extracurricular commitment, whether by making sure they have the right gear for their sport or by getting them to their workouts, practices, and competitions. With all of that, there is something else you can do to help as well: make sure they stay eligible to compete for their high school team or teams.
In Idaho, the Idaho High School Activities Association (IHSAA) regulates eligibility and competition for high school sports at Idaho's more than 160 high schools across the state. While the IHSAA publishes a detailed, comprehensive handbook that lists all of the rules, regulations, forms, and other information for schools, coaches, officials, students, and fans across Idaho, at more than 120 pages, it can be difficult to find the eligibility information you might be looking for.
The Lento Law Firm Student Defense Team has put together this summary for parents, guardians, and others who are interested in some of the most important eligibility rules that apply to Idaho high school athletics. If, after reviewing this, you have questions about your student-athlete situation, contact us to find out how our experienced student-athlete attorneys can help you and your student keep or regain their eligibility.
Age-Limit and Semester-Limit Restrictions and Waiver Requests
Students enrolled in high school in Idaho are eligible to compete in sports – assuming they meet all other eligibility requirements – until they reach the age of 20. Once they turn 20, they are ineligible for any future sports seasons, though they may complete the season they're in if they turn 20 in the middle of a season.
Once enrolled in 9th grade, student-athletes are eligible to compete for eight consecutive semesters. The semesters continue to count even if the student-athlete doesn't compete during a semester or if they are not enrolled in school for one or more semesters.
Eligibility rules, including the age-limit and semester-limit rules, may be waived by the IHSAA Board of Directors when, “in the opinion of the Board, the rule fails to accomplish the purpose for which it was intended.” Eligibility waiver requests must be submitted by the principal of the student-athlete's school. Waiver requests are often based on hardship grounds; these are typically situations where, for reasons beyond the control of the student, the school, or the family, the student was prevented from attending school during one or more semesters. Typical reasons include the student-athlete injury or illness or the serious illness or death of a close family member that prevented the student from being in school.
Whether to submit a waiver request of any eligibility rule is often a judgment call. The Lento Law Firm Student Defense Team can help you make that call by giving you the benefit of their experience representing students and student-athletes in similar situations and their knowledge of the Idaho eligibility rules and waiver procedures.
Academic Eligibility Requirements and Waiver Requests
Student-athletes must be enrolled full-time in order to be eligible to compete in extracurricular sports. They must also be “on target to graduate” based on Idaho Board of Education graduation requirements. This means that they must either have the “necessary number of credits to graduate with their class” through the normal course of their studies, or they must have a “graduation plan that provides for receiving a diploma by the end of the summer following their senior year” if they want to remain eligible to compete.
In addition, they must have passed a certain number of their courses during the previous grade reporting period, typically a semester, but which may vary depending on how your student-athlete's school divides its school year.
The IHSAA rules list the following course-passing requirements:
- 3 or 4 classes attempted – the student must pass 3
- 5 classes attempted – the student must pass 4
- 6 or 7 classes attempted – the student must pass 5
- 8 classes attempted – the student must pass 6
If they haven't met these requirements during a semester, the student-athlete is ineligible to compete during the next semester (unless a summer or other type of course remedies the failure).
Student-athletes must have a cumulative GPA of at least 2.0. If they don't, they must have an “academic improvement plan” in place that includes “monitoring, additional assistance, time provided for assistance, and an appropriate timeline” for successful completion of the plan and an increase to their cumulative GPA.
If a student wants to apply for a summer or night school class, a correspondence course, or a college course and wants to apply that course to their eligibility requirement, they need to have written approval from their high school principal “stating that each specific course credit will be accepted and counted toward graduation.”
These eligibility requirements may also be waived by the IHSAA Board of Directors, with the process being the same as that for age-limit and semester-limit waivers. If you believe your student-athlete may be eligible for a waiver of the IHSAA academic eligibility requirements, contact the Lento Law Firm Student Defense Team for help. Our experienced team can go over your situation with you and give you an idea of how we can help your student-athlete regain eligibility.
School Disciplinary Defense
Student-athletes spend a lot more time in the classroom and in school than they do on the practice field or in competitions. This also means they are more likely to lose eligibility due to in-school discipline than for anything that might take place away from class.
Every school has its handbook or code of conduct that applies to its students. These typically set forth the types of behavior that are expected of students and the behavior that's prohibited. There may also be a description of the process used to investigate and resolve misconduct claims against students and a listing of some of the types of sanctions that the school can apply.
Even in situations where a student-athlete isn't suspended or expelled from school for behavior-related reasons, the school can still prohibit the student from participating in extracurricular activities, including sports. This means that if your student-athlete is accused of serious misconduct, you need to pay close attention to the situation and make sure the allegation is fully and fairly investigated and that your student-athlete rights are respected throughout the process.
Unfortunately, busy school administrators don't always have the training or the time to properly investigate misconduct claims, and they may not always review the results or conduct hearings in a fair way. Having an experienced attorney by your side to make sure that an investigation is complete and that the review of the claims is done fairly can make a huge difference in the outcome for your student. The experienced attorneys at the Lento Law Firm Student Defense Team know how to make sure that student disciplinary investigations are as fair as possible. With their extensive background helping students facing similar situations, they can – where appropriate – also discuss possible outcomes with school officials that still allow the student-athlete to compete while still respecting the school's need to maintain order and discipline.
Discipline Defense for Behavior During Games
A student-athlete ejected from a competition is automatically ineligible to compete at the next scheduled competition. The student must complete the online IHSAA sportsmanship course before they will be allowed to compete again.
A second ejection on sportsmanship grounds will result in a two-competition suspension, and a third will result in the student-athlete losing eligibility for the rest of the season.
Ejections may be appealed by the school's principal to the President of the IHSAA District Board of Control for the region in which the competition took place. That said, “Appeals may not deal with decisions made by contest officials.” There may be cases, however, where video footage of a competition clearly shows that the ejected student-athlete was not involved in the situation that resulted in the ejection. In these kinds of situations, an appeal may be appropriate. The Lento Law Firm Student Defense Team can help you and your student-athlete collect the evidence necessary to support the appeal and can help put together the appeal request for your student's principal to submit.
Transfer Eligibility Issues
Student-athletes are generally eligible to compete at the school where they first enroll at the beginning of 9th grade. After that, if they transfer schools, their eligibility at the new school depends on the circumstances of their transfer. The IHSAA transfer rules are complicated, and it's important to have an understanding of how they may affect your student-athletes eligibility before you commit to making a move.
If the student-athlete's family makes a “bona fide move” to a new home in a new attendance area and completes and submits an Athletic Transfer Form to the new school, the student-athlete is immediately eligible to compete at the new school. Extra information must be supplied if the family moves to a new home that is less than 50 miles from their old one.
The student-athlete may choose to remain at the old school after the family moves and will continue to be eligible at the old school through the end of the semester or school year.
Student-athletes whose parents are divorced or legally separated may choose to live with one of the parents and transfer to a school in that district and will be eligible to compete. After that, the student-athlete may change residences two times – moving to the other parent's home, then back to the original parent's home – and will be eligible to compete at the school located in the district where each parent lives. After the second transfer, however, the student must submit an Eligibility Regulation Waiver request to the IHSAA.
Any other type of transfer, such as a transfer to a new school without the family moving, will result in the student-athlete being ineligible to compete at the new school for one year from the date they enroll and begin attending the new school. Students in these situations may be able to secure a waiver of the transfer eligibility rules but will need to submit an Eligibility Regulation Waiver request to the IHSAA. These may be granted in hardship cases, but the waiver request must support the hardship claim.
The most important thing to do if your family is considering a move or if your student-athlete wants to change schools is to plan ahead. The Lento Law Firm Student Defense Team can help you review your situation in light of the IHSAA transfer eligibility rules to determine how your planned change might impact your student-athletes's eligibility. Where a waiver request may be appropriate, we can help you collect the information needed to support such a request and provide it to your student's principal since the requests need to be filed by a school administrator.
The Lento Law Firm Can Help Keep Your Student-Athlete Competing
The Lento Law Firm Student Defense Team has helped students all over the country fight for their rights, whether as a result of misconduct allegations, grade-related ineligibility determinations, transfer eligibility issues, or other situations affecting their ability to compete in the sports that they love. If your student-athlete is facing such a situation, call the Lento Law Firm Student Defense Team at 888.535.3686. Our student-athlete attorneys are available to learn more about your situation and tell you how we can help. If you'd rather schedule a confidential conference online, use our convenient online contact form.
Your student-athlete's years in high school will be over before you know it. Let us help you keep them eligible for every season!
