As the parent or guardian of a high school student involved in school athletics in New Mexico, you see first-hand how hard your student-athlete works. For many high schoolers, it takes a significant amount of time and energy just to stay on top of their academics, but student-athletes go above and beyond. They commit to getting and staying in top physical condition, learning and improving the skills necessary for their sport, and participating in practices and competitions throughout their sport's season. And some do this for more than one sport.
When you consider how quickly the four years of high school can fly by, you can understand how important it is to make sure your student-athlete doesn't lose eligibility to compete, even for a little bit. That's why the Lento Law Firm Student Defense Team has put together this guide to the rules and regulations covering student-athlete eligibility for high school sports in New Mexico. While the New Mexico Activities Association (NMAA) publishes a very comprehensive, multi-chapter handbook that covers virtually all aspects of high school sports in New Mexico, it can be hard sometimes to sort through all of that information to find what you need.
This summary focuses on some of the more important questions that parents, guardians, and high school student-athletes have about staying eligible to compete in New Mexico. If you still have questions about your particular situation after reading this, contact the Lento Law Firm Student Defense Team for help. We have helped high school student-athletes all over the country who are facing eligibility issues, and we are ready to help you and your student in New Mexico.
Age-Limit and Semester-Limit Restrictions and Waiver Requests
Assuming they meet all other eligibility requirements, student-athletes are eligible to compete in high school sports until they turn 19. Then their eligibility depends on when their birthday is. A student who turns 19 after August 31 is eligible to compete throughout the next school year. If they turn 19 any earlier, then they are not eligible to compete during the next school year.
In addition, student-athletes are eligible for eight consecutive semesters of competition beginning with the first semester of 9th grade. In some cases, if a student is forced to withdraw from school (not just from athletics) early in a semester (before the 16th day of the semester) due to illness, injury, or disability and did not yet participate in athletics during that semester, and was unable to return to school during that entire semester, the semester may not be counted as one of the eight.
A request for a waiver of the semester limit based on these conditions is decided by the NMAA Director. The parents or school making the request must provide evidence to support the request.
Decisions of the NMAA Director may be appealed to the NMAA Appeal Review Committee. Appeals must be based on an "official letter" from the NMAA Director on the issue to be appealed. Appeals must be brought by the school, not by the parent or the student-athlete. Evidence to support the appeal needs to be submitted along with the request for appeal. The NMAA Appeal Review Committee may hold hearings during which they will accept "evidence and testimony" on an "informal" basis, though the hearing must "follow generally accepted rules and procedures for ensuring due process."
If your student-athlete is in a situation where their eligibility depends on a successful appeal, having the help of the Lento Law Firm Student Defense Team can make all the difference between a successful appeal and one that is rejected by the NMAA Appeal Review Committee. With years of experience helping student-athletes maintain eligibility in high schools all over the country, the Lento Law Firm Student Defense Team is able to quickly understand the issues, identify the evidence that supports your student-athlete appeal request, and craft a persuasive and professional appeal on your student-athletes behalf. In addition, it's not unusual for the Lento Law Firm Student Defense Team members to work with school officials to help them put together the information required by the appeal process.
Academic Eligibility Waiver Requests and Appeals
Student-athletes must keep at least a 2.0 GPA (out of 4.0 total) and have earned no "F" grades during the previous semester in order to be eligible to compete during the next semester of school. Students who are not eligible at the beginning of a semester can regain eligibility after six weeks of the new semester if their grades meet these standards.
Summer school class grades for classes completed before the start of the fall semester could be used to regain eligibility if the student-athlete did not meet the spring semester standards. The summer school class must be the exact same class as the one that the student received a poor or failing grade in.
There is another way that a student with poor performance during a particular semester may be able to regain eligibility for the next semester. This is called the "cumulative provision." The cumulative provision considers all grades earned from the beginning of 9th grade to determine the student-athlete GPA at the end of a semester where the student's performance did not meet the minimum. It can't be used if the student-athlete has more than one "F" in the semester just before the one in which they want to participate. In addition, the student-athlete must have passed at least 51% of their coursework in that semester to be able to use the cumulative provision.
A student-athlete who is eligible at the beginning of a semester keeps that eligibility (based on academics) throughout that semester.
The academic requirement can be waived in certain situations where the student-athlete received an "Incomplete" grade (which is treated as an "F" for GPA purposes) if the student is able to demonstrate that the incomplete was the result of "sickness or death in the immediate family or any other legitimate cause." Waiver petitions must be filed with the NMAA by the administrative head of the student's school.
School Disciplinary Defense
Student-athletes spend more time in school attending classes than they do practicing and competing in athletics. As a result, they are much more likely to lose eligibility due to a disciplinary problem in the classroom than they are at practice or at a competition. All schools have student handbooks or codes of conduct that describe the type of behavior that is expected of students as well as the type of behavior that is prohibited. They typically give the school administration a lot of leeway in terms of how they handle misconduct allegations.
As a result, investigations of misconduct allegations by busy school administrators are not always as complete as they should be. Enforcement of discipline can sometimes be uneven as well. The result can be unfair to a student-athlete who is accused of misconduct and punished based on a less-than-thorough examination of the facts surrounding the incident. And because discipline can include in-school punishments such as a prohibition on participating in extracurricular activities (including athletics), even if a student isn't suspended or expelled as a result of a misconduct allegation, the student may still not be eligible to compete.
The Lento Law Firm Student Defense Team has years of experience helping high school students deal with serious misconduct allegations. We understand how to investigate these claims and can often learn what school officials don't – namely, "the rest of the story." We can also make sure that your student-athlete's rights are respected throughout the investigation and through any hearing process. And finally, our years of experience give us a unique perspective on school discipline that allows us to talk with school officials and, where appropriate, suggest alternative forms of discipline that will keep your student competing while respecting the school's need to maintain order.
Discipline Defense for Behavior During Games
Student-athletes ejected from competition on sportsmanship grounds are ineligible to compete for one competition after the one from which they were ejected. They must also complete a sportsmanship course before they can resume competing.
If they are ejected for a second time, they are suspended for two competitions and must meet with the NMAA Executive Director or someone designated by the Executive Director. In addition, they may also face another sanction from their school's athletic director (if approved by the NMAA).
A third ejection will result in a 180 school-day / 365 calendar-day suspension from competition. Before they can return to competition, they also must meet with the NMAA Executive Director or someone designated by the Executive Director.
If the student-athlete ejection involved "battery" – the "use of force against another resulting in harmful or offensive contact" – then they are suspended from 15% of their sports total allowed games during a season. Any fraction of a game is rounded up so that the suspension will be for at least one game and possibly more, depending on the sport's maximum possible game total. If they are then ejected again for any reason – battery or otherwise – they will lose eligibility for 180 school days / 365 calendar days.
There are limited chances to appeal a sportsmanship ejection. The NMAA rules state that appeals are only considered "wherein a misapplication of rules has occurred." Any appeal must include the "complete game film" and a letter that "specifies the purpose of the appeal," signed by the school principal and athletic director. The appeal request has to be received by the NMAA before the next scheduled contest.
The Lento Law Firm Student Defense Team can help you decide whether your student-athlete may be eligible for an appeal if they have been ejected from a competition on sportsmanship grounds. One typical reason for appeals of this type is misidentification by the official. In-game situations, where multiple athletes are active at the same time, it's not unusual for players to be misidentified as the ones responsible for misconduct. Quick and careful analysis of the game film can sometimes help identify situations where an official has mistakenly identified and ejected a player who was not involved in the incident.
Residence and Transfer Issues
Student-athletes are eligible to compete at the high school "within the attendance boundaries of the Student's primary residence" where the student-athlete "resides with his or her Parent or Legal Guardian." There are specific and detailed criteria set by the NMAA to determine whether a residence claimed by a student is a "bona fide" residence for eligibility purposes. Basically, the family must all live together in residence; they should be able to show that they own or lease it; siblings should also attend schools in the same attendance zone; their mail and personal belongings should all be at that residence.
Student-athletes are immediately eligible to compete at a school in their attendance boundaries of where their bona fide residence is. There are some limitations to this, however.
If the student transfers to the new school after the 10th day of the semester, they must wait until they have attended the new school for 11 days before they are eligible to compete. And if they transfer to a new school after they have begun competing at their old school, they are not eligible to compete in that sport at the new school until the following season.
Student-athletes who transfer to a new high school without a "bona fide" residence change must generally wait 180 school days / 365 calendar days before they are eligible to compete at the varsity level at the new school.
There are a number of exceptions and conditions to eligibility for student-athletes transferring from one school to another. Students living with separated or divorced parents may be entitled to exceptions. And students who are recruited or who transfer to follow a coach can find their eligibility lost for an entire year. On top of all of this, in hardship cases, the NMAA Hardship Review Committee can waive transfer rules.
Because of the complexity of the NMAA transfer rules, it's important to plan ahead before doing anything that could affect your student-athlete's ability to compete at a new school. Even if you are considering what is probably a "bona fide" move to a new school district, it pays to double-check to make sure that your student-athlete will be eligible to compete at the new school after the move. As you can see, the timing of your move can make a difference; a move during the summer break means that your student is likely to be immediately eligible, while one made during the school year can leave your student-athlete unable to finish their season.
The Lento Law Firm Student Defense Team understands the NMAA transfer policies and can help you evaluate your situation and make a transfer decision that will keep your student-athlete competing.
The Lento Law Firm Can Help Keep Your Student-Athlete Competing
The Lento Law Firm Student Defense Team has been helping high school student-athletes and their families with athletic eligibility and other issues for years, all over the United States. We understand how the eligibility policies work in New Mexico, and we are ready to help you understand your student-athlete's situation. Where necessary, we are also ready to go to bat for your student-athlete to make sure their rights are respected and that they receive a full and fair review of any issues that may jeopardize their eligibility.
If your student-athlete is facing a situation that could result in a loss of eligibility, contact the Lento Law Firm Student Defense Team today at 888.535.3686, or use our online contact form to set up a confidential consultation. We understand how important this is to you and your student, and we are ready to listen and help!
