Parents and guardians of high school student-athletes in Colorado know just how hard their student-athletes work to balance the rigors of playing the sports that they love with the need to keep up with their schoolwork. It can be like having two jobs sometimes, with all the work of keeping in shape, practicing to learn and perfect the skills needed to excel at a particular sport, and then also having to stay on top of homework, projects, and tests.
And you've been a big part of their success so far, making sure they get to their practices, training sessions, and competitions; helping them with the clothing and equipment they need for their sport; and also being there when they have tough homework questions or need to prepare for tests. But there is even more you can do: you can help make sure they stay eligible to play.
High school sports in Colorado are governed by the Colorado High School Activities Association (CHSAA), which also sets the rules for non-sport activities such as Speech & Debate and Esports. More than 350 high schools across the state belong to the CHSAA, and the organization publishes a comprehensive set of bylaws that apply to schools, coaches, officials, and students. At more than 150 pages, however, it can be difficult to wade through and find the information you may be looking for. So what follows is a summary of some of the more important eligibility standards for high school student-athletes in Colorado.
If you have questions about any of these points or if your student-athlete's eligibility to play high school sports is being challenged, contact student-athlete attorney Joseph D. Lento and the Lento Law Firm Student Defense team for help. They have years of experience helping student-athletes all across the US with eligibility as well as student discipline issues, and they can advise you on what steps to take to keep your student-athlete competing as much as possible through their high school years.
Age-Limit and Semester-Limit Restrictions and Waiver Requests
In Colorado, students are eligible to compete in high school sports provided they have not turned 19 before August 1 of any school year. So if a student-athlete turns 19 on July 30, they will not be eligible to compete for the entire coming school year. If they turn 19 on August 2, they will be.
Student-athletes who have a documented disability that has delayed the start of their high school career and caused them to exceed the age-limit restriction may be eligible for a waiver. The principal or other authorized designee must request the waiver from the CHSAA Commissioner.
Student-athletes also have eight consecutive semesters of potential eligibility once they begin 9th grade. This limitation may also be waived in hardship situations, but only where the hardship prevented the student-athlete from attending school. A student who is injured or ill and is unable to compete, but can still attend school, is not eligible for a waiver of the eight-consecutive-semester limitation.
If your student-athlete is facing an age-limit or semester-limit loss of eligibility, and you believe that they may be entitled to a waiver, contact student-athlete attorney advisor Joseph D. Lento for help. He and the Lento Law Firm Student Defense Team have years of experience helping student-athletes secure eligibility waivers where the situation may support waiver requests, and they can help your student-athlete continue to compete.
Academic Eligibility Issues
Colorado has a rather complicated set of academic eligibility rules. They differ slightly depending on whether your student-athlete is attending a “Plan A” school or a “Plan B” school. The two plans are the same in that each requires the student-athlete to be enrolled in classes that will provide at least 2.5 Academic units of credit for the semester. For “Plan A” schools, the student athlete must not be failing a class or classes that represent more than one-half of an Academic unit of credit; while in “Plan B” schools, the student must be passing classes that represent a minimum of 2.5 Academic units of credit.
The next academic eligibility issue is how often the school checks the student-athletes progress. This is important because it defines how long the student will be ineligible if they fail to meet the academic standard. For example, if a school checks eligibility every two weeks and a student-athlete is found to be ineligible academically during one of those checks, the student-athlete will be ineligible for at least two weeks until the next eligibility check and if they have improved their grades sufficiently, they will be eligible after that.
However, if a school only checks eligibility once a semester, a student who is found to be ineligible will remain so for an entire semester until the next eligibility check.
On top of the periodic eligibility checks, student-athletes are evaluated at the close of each semester. If they've failed to meet the academic standard that applies to their school, they will be ineligible to compete at the beginning of the next semester and can only regain eligibility after a certain number of weeks have passed in the new semester. The number of weeks the student-athlete must wait to become eligible (assuming their grades in the new semester are good enough) varies depending on the sport.
Student-athletes may not use so-called “make-up work” completed after a semester ends to remedy their failure to meet the academic standard that semester. The CHSAA provides an exception to this, where the student-athletes failure to complete work during the semester was the result of a “manifest hardship” such as an injury or illness or other “circumstances beyond their control.” In those cases, the school can provide the student with a “reasonable time” to make up the missing work, and if the student-athlete does so successfully, then they will be able to compete at the beginning of the next semester.
Summer school courses are not considered “make-up work” and may be used to make up for a student-athletes failure to earn enough Academic units during the previous semester.
If you have questions about your student-athlete's eligibility due to academic issues, or if you believe your student-athlete may be entitled to a hardship exception to the CHSAA academic eligibility rules, contact student-athlete attorney Joseph D. Lento and the Lento Law Firm Student Defense Team for help. They can help you interpret the sometimes-confusing CHSAA rules in this area and, where appropriate, work with your student-athletes school to keep your student competing while making sure they meet their academic obligations.
School Disciplinary Defense
Student-athletes spend much more time in the classroom as students than they do on the practice field or in competition as athletes, and as a result, they are more likely to run into disciplinary issues in the school environment. Colorado high schools all have codes of conduct that apply to students (including to student-athletes, of course), and the schools have a wide range of options when it comes to the consequences that they can impose for a student's misconduct.
Of course, if a student is suspended from school, they will not be eligible to compete in sports until they are allowed to return, but schools can also keep a student in school while suspending their ability to participate in extracurricular activities – including sports.
While school codes of conduct are an important and necessary part of high school life, the problem with them is that very often, they are not administered fairly. Overworked school administrators may not fully investigate misconduct claims against a student, and hearings are not always conducted in a way that fully respects the accused student's rights. That is where having student-athlete attorney Joseph D. Lento and the Lento Law Firm Student Defense Team on your side can make all the difference. They have years of experience advising high school students all over the country who find themselves caught up in the school disciplinary process, and they can help you and your student-athlete handle disciplinary allegations that could result in loss of eligibility (as well as a permanent mark on their student record).
Whether it's gathering evidence that the school may have missed, negotiating with school administration to drop or modify charges against your student, negotiating alternative forms of discipline where that's appropriate, or representing your student in a conference or formal hearing, student-athlete attorney Joseph D. Lento and the Lento Law Firm Student Defense Team have the kind of experience that can help your student-athlete protect their rights in a disciplinary situation.
Discipline Defense for In-Game Misconduct
A student-athlete who is ejected from a competition for unsportsmanlike conduct will also be ineligible to compete in the next scheduled competition at that level, whether that competition is this season or next. A second ejection during a season will result in a two-match suspension, and a third ejection will subject the student-athlete to “a penalty to be determined by the Commissioner” of the CHSAA.
Schools are not allowed to appeal an official's ejection of a student-athlete from a competition. If, however, matters escalate to the Commissioner level because of a student-athletes third ejection, there may be an opportunity for the student-athlete to be heard before the Commissioner imposes a penalty. In this kind of very serious situation, it can be extremely helpful to have student-athlete attorney Joseph D. Lento and the Lento Law Firm Student Defense Team advising you. They can review the situation, determine whether the officials made any serious mistakes, and argue on your student's behalf to the CHSAA Commissioner before the Commissioner imposes any penalty.
CHSAA rules otherwise do not allow for any appeals of penalties imposed for unsportsmanlike conduct.
Transfer Issues and Waiver Requests
The CHSAA has a complicated set of rules that relate to student transfer situations. Generally speaking, a student-athlete who transfers to a new school as a result of their family's (parents or guardians) move to a home in a new school district will be eligible to compete in that new school immediately. The move must be a “bona fide” family move, a “permanent change in the family's place of domicile.”
In other transfer situations, however, a student-athlete may find that they are ineligible to compete at their new high school for a significant period of time. For example, if the CHSAA finds that a student-athlete transfer was “substantially motivated by athletic considerations” the student-athlete will be ineligible to compete for 365 days from the date they transferred, even if their family has moved to a new home in the district from outside of the school district. The ineligibility applies to any sport that the student-athlete competed in at their old school during the past 365 days before the transfer.
Student-athletes who transfer to a new school without a “bona fide” family move will similarly be ineligible to compete at the varsity level at their new school for 365 days from the transfer date, again for the sports in which they had competed at their old school.
It's important to submit a waiver form when a student transfers as a result of a bona fide family move that complies with the CHSAA bylaws and includes the required documentation.
So-called “hardship waivers” are available in limited circumstances. Generally speaking, a hardship waiver is based on a situation that can be documented and that requires that the student-athlete transfer schools. There are specific standards that apply to what is and is not considered a hardship. The decisions of the CHSAA Commissioner in hardship waiver request situations may be appealed to the CHSAA Appeals Committee.
If your family is considering moving to a new home in a different school district, or if your student-athlete is considering transferring to a new high school, contact student-athlete attorney Joseph D. Lento and the Lento Law Firm Student Defense Team for help before making any move. They understand how the CHSAA transfer bylaws work and can help you understand in advance what the effects are likely to be on your student-athletes eligibility. Where appropriate, they can also help you secure a hardship waiver or can appeal a hardship waiver decision that isn't in your student-athletes favor.
Joseph D. Lento Can Help Keep Your Student-Athlete Competing
With years of experience helping student-athletes across the country with disciplinary and eligibility issues, student-athlete attorney Joseph D. Lento and the Lento Law Firm Student Defense Team are here to help you navigate what can be the confusing and often frustrating process of understanding the CHSAA bylaws and keeping your student-athlete eligible to compete. If your student-athlete is facing a situation where their eligibility is being threatened or has been taken away from them, contact Joseph D. Lento and the Lento Law Firm Student Defense Team today. They are ready and able to help.
Call Joseph D. Lento at 888.535.3686, or reach out to the Lento Law Firm Student Defense Team through their online contact form to set up a confidential consultation. You'll be glad you did.
