| LEGISLATIVE PROPOSAL FOR CHANGE IN NSAA RULES AND REGULATIONS | ||||
| Title: | Eligibility for Eigth Grade Students in High School Activities - All Class | |||
| Author: | Rod Peters | |||
| School: | Bancroft-Rosalie | |||
| NSAA District: | 3 | |||
| Proposal for: | Constitution & Bylaws | |||
| Classes Affected: | All | |||
| Activities Affected: | All | |||
| This proposal: | WILL NOT increase costs to the school WILL NOT increase costs to the NSAA WILL NOT increase travel for participating schools WILL NOT decrease a student's or coach's instruction time | |||
| Implementation date: | 2027-08-01 | |||
| Sections affected in Constitution & Bylaws: | Page 22 24 25 28 29 | Article 2 2 2 2 2 | Section 2.1.1 2.1.1 2.2.3 2.6.3 2.6.4 | |
| Summary: | This proposal would allow 8th-grade students in all classifications to participate in NSAA-sponsored school activities. | |||
| Rationale: | Allowing 8th-grade students to participate helps ensure the viability of extracurricular programs by providing schools with enough participants to field teams and avoid forfeits, schedule reductions, or canceled seasons.
Several states with small and rural schools, including North Dakota, South Dakota, Kansas, and Iowa already permit 8th-grade students to compete in high school activities under specific conditions. Adopting a similar approach in Nebraska would not be unusual and would provide schools with additional flexibility in maintaining participation opportunities. This proposal expands opportunities for students while helping smaller schools sustain their programs. At the same time, it does not create a disadvantage for larger schools, which typically have sufficient roster numbers to support their activities. | |||
| Pros: | More Junior Varsity games for schools.
Games will not be forfeited or cancelled. Music already allows Junior High students to participate. | |||
| Cons: | Local schools will need to decide if 8th grade students will play on both high school and middle level activities. | |||