TMSAA Minutes

February 18, 2009

 

The Tennessee Middle School Athletic Association held its second meeting of the school year on Wednesday, February 18, 2009, at the TSSAA office in Hermitage.  Committee members present were Tommy Shelton, Robert Cole, Chic Nute, Michael Lowe, Vic King, and Ken Hilliard.

 

The committee was presented with the current membership list for approval.  Eight schools applied for first time membership into the association.  This brings the current membership to 307 member schools.  Smith Co. Middle School was moved from Area 5 (East) to Area 1 (Middle).  This puts the middle school in the same area of the state as the high school.

 

Committee members decided on the topics to be discussed with our Athletic Directors during the TMSAA Forum at the Athletic Directors’ Conference on April 21^st.  The conference will be held at the Embassy Suites in Murfreesboro, TN.  The topics that will be discussed are as follows:

 

1. Game Administrator Meetings (Mandated in Football & Basketball)
2. Game Security
3. TMSAA Area & Sectional Alignment
4. Playing of Ineligible Athlete (Vacating Wins)
5. Ineligible Athlete Provides False Information

 

The committee discussed Article II, Section 7 (Repeating Rule) of the TSSAA Bylaws and how it relates to Rule 7 (Academic Rule) of the TMSAA Bylaws.  The TMSAA Academic Rule states the following:

 

To be eligible to participate in athletic contests a student shall have been academically promoted to the next higher grade.  Any student repeating a grade is ineligible to participate.  A student who is ineligible at the beginning of the school year may gain eligibility the second semester by passing five (5) subjects or the equivalent the preceding semester provided the student is not repeating the same grade.

 

Article II, Section 7 of the TSSAA Bylaws states the following:

 

Any student repeating the seventh grade after having passed the seventh grade or repeating the eighth grade after passing the eighth grade shall not be eligible to participate in athletics during their ninth-grade year.

 

Committee members were given a brief history of this particular rule.  Since the rule has been in effect, a number of hardship cases have been submitted on 9^th graders who have repeated 7^th or 8^th grade after having passed that grade.  The general approach has been: (1) Is there a valid reason for repeating and (2) During the year in which the student repeated the 7^th or 8^th grade did the student participate in athletics at the school?  The question that is now arising more and more deals with situations where the student may participate during the year in which they repeated 7^th or 8^th grade but have not participated in any other years.  This can only occur in non-member schools.  At no time during the year can a student repeating a grade participate at a member middle school.  As the Board of Control has dealt with some appeals in regard to this particular rule, there are two questions that must be answered:  (1) Whether students who have only participated a maximum of two years from the time they first entered the 7^th grade be approved and (2) Should students attending TMSAA member schools be allowed to participate the year they repeat provided they play a maximum of two years in middle school once reaching the 7^th grade?

 

Members of the committee felt that we should not allow students repeating any grade to participate.  The TMSAA rule is sound and should not be changed.

 

The Legislative Council set criteria to be used in soccer when a player is ejected.  The number of games the player has to sit out will be determined based on the infraction.  An example would be whether the individual was ejected for unsportsmanlike conduct or a tactical foul.  Rule 11 of the TMSAA Bylaws was changed to be consistent with the high school rule.

 

Committee members considered a request from Newport Grammar School to move from Area 1 to Area 3 in East Tennessee.  A second request was made by Wartburg Central Middle School to move from Area 2 to Area 4 in East Tennessee.  Both requests were approved.

 

A request from Hickman Co. Middle School to move from the Northern Area of Middle Tennessee to the South Area was considered.  This request was also granted because this is where they were originally.

 

Committee members also approved a request from Roane County Schools to form the Clinch Valley Middle School Football Conference beginning with the 2009-10 school year.

 

Members of the committee were given and discussed information provided by the TSSAA Technology Coordinator which plotted every school in the Association by Area and 8^th grade enrollment.  This will be vital as the committee considers future realignment.