FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
April 10, 2001


Two sports per season requirement among seven proposals adopted by Representative Assembly

GAINESVILLE – The Representative Assembly of the Florida High School Activities Association today voted 53-5 to require that member senior high schools sponsor a varsity program in a minimum of two FHSAA-sanctioned sports during each sports season in order to participate in the state championship series.

The amendment to Bylaw 9.7.1, which will go into effect July 1, 2003, compels schools to sponsor a diverse and well-rounded athletic program. The requirement does not impede a school's opportunity for membership in the Association.

"There has been a growing concern amongst the membership about schools that sponsor only one or two sports, specializing in those sports and dominating in those sports," said Commissioner Robert W. Hughes, who sponsored the proposal. "This proposal will require those schools to add additional sports to their programs if they want to continue to participate in the state championship series in any sport."

Hughes continued: "The new bylaw won't be implemented until the 2002-03 school year, which means the earliest any school would be impacted by this rule would be the 2003-04 school year. Therefore, schools will have two years to bring their programs into compliance with the new provision."

In other business, the Assembly voted down a proposal that would have staff multiply the student populations of private schools and university laboratory schools by a factor of 1.5 for the purpose of assigning such schools to classifications. This proposal to amend Bylaw 9.7.2 failed with 21 affirmative votes and 37 negative votes.

The Representative Assembly considered 18 proposals to amend the Association's bylaws. Fifty-eight of the 69 total delegates attended the two-day meeting and cast votes. Seven proposals received 39 or more affirmative votes – the necessary two-thirds required for passage. Proposal No. 8, which attempted to clarify the terms "enrollment" and "attendance" as used in FHSAA bylaws, was withdrawn by Commissioner Hughes, its sponsor.

The Representative Assembly is the body charged with considering, adopting or rejecting proposals to amend the Association's bylaws.

Proposals adopted by the Representative Assembly were as follows:

• Proposal 1 – Eliminates the reference to a specific physical address for the Association office (58 yes, 0 no).

• Proposal 2 – Establishes August 1 as the deadline for filing an application for membership by a prospective new member school (58 yes, 0 no).

• Proposal 3 – Requires that member senior high schools that desire to participate in the Association's state championship series in any sport sponsor a diverse and well-rounded athletic program (53 yes, 5 no).

• Proposal 6 – Requires a student to be enrolled in school within 10 school days of the beginning of each semester in a school year, rather than just at the beginning of the school year (50 yes, 8 no).

• Proposal 7 – Permits students who attend non-member public middle schools and junior high schools that do not have athletic programs to participate in interscholastic athletics at a member public school in that same school district on the middle school or junior high school level only (40 yes, 18 no).

• Proposal 13(a) – Clarifies that a student who participates in non-school athletics on a team that is affiliated with a school other than the one the student attends or attended in the previous year and subsequently transfers to that school is considered to have done so either because he/she was recruited or for athletic reasons (52 yes, 6 no).

• Proposal 14 – Clarifies that by filing a request for an undue hardship waiver, the student and his/her school acknowledge that the student is ineligible according to FHSAA rules, and better establishes the criteria for determining the validity of an undue hardship (57 yes, 1 no).

Proposals rejected by the Representative Assembly were as follows:

• Proposal 4 – Would have adjusted upward by 50 percent the student populations of private schools and university laboratory schools for the purpose of assigning such schools to classifications (21 yes, 37 no).

• Proposal 5(a) – Would have permitted member school coaches to have contact with non-school teams comprised, in whole or in part, of their athletes outside of the sports season during the school year (19 yes, 39 no).

• Proposal 5(b) – Would have eliminated the "50-percent rule", thereby allowing member school coaches to have contact with non-school teams comprised, in whole or in part, of their athletes outside of the sports season during the school year (28 yes, 30 no).

• Proposal 9 – Would have established that students will be eligible to represent in interscholastic competition only that school which serves the attendance zone in which the student resides with his/her parent(s), gardian(s) or other indiviudal(s) with whom he/she has resided for a full year (6 yes, 52 no).

• Proposal 10 – Would have clarified that enrolling in a new school at the beginning of the ninth grade after completion of the eighth grade is not a transfer between schools (26 yes, 32 no).

• Proposal 11 – Would have permitted students to transfer schools (public to private and vice versa) during a school year to participate in interscholastic athletic competition on the sub-varsity level for the duration of the school year in the new school (6 yes, 52 no).

• Proposal 12 – Would have permitted students to transfer schools (public to public and private to private) during a school year to participate in interscholastic athletic competition on the sub-varsity level for the duration of the school year in the new school (6 yes, 52 no).

• Proposal 13(b) – Would have exempted a student who participates in individally based summer programs or camps affiliated with a school other than the one the student attends or attended and subsequently transfers to that school from a finding that such a transfer is prima facie evidence that the student was recruited or transferred for athletic reasons (8 yes, 50 no).

• Proposal 15 – Would have held in abeyance the effects of a ruling by the Commissioner when a school files an appeal of that ruling until the appeal has been ruled upon by the Sectional Appeals Committee (2 yes, 56 no).

• Proposal 16 – Would have held in abeyance the effects of a ruling by the Commissioner and the subsequent sustaining of that ruling by the Sectional Appeals Committee when a school files an appeal until the appeal has been ruled upon by the Board of Directors (0 yes, 58 no).

Six of the seven proposals that were adopted take effect July 1, 2001. Proposal No. 3 takes effect July 1, 2003.

The Florida High School Activities Association is the governing body for interscholastic athletic competition in Florida. It has a membership of 640 middle, junior and senior high schools.

The FHSAA Representative Assembly is the legislative authority of the Association. It meets annually to consider proposals to amend the Association's bylaws, which establishes the framework for the Association's organization and operation.

Contact:
Jack Watford
Director of Communications, FHSAA
(352) 372-9551 ext. 170
jwatford@fhsaa.org