The TSSAA Board of Control met in Mt. Juliet on Monday, August 17.
The board voted to approve the 2026-27 school year budget, finalized the Division II Financial Aid Report for the prior school year, and approved minutes from the June 9-10 session. After hearing an update on the construction of the new office building, the Board voted unanimously to name the board room in the new building the Mike Reed Board Room, in honor of former TSSAA Board of Control member and president, Mike Reed, who recently retired, ending his 40 years of dedicated service to the TSSAA.
The board approved an exception allowing a Valor Collegiate senior girls soccer player to participate in the U19 Pan American Cup and granted approval for an earlier start date to the boys and girls lacrosse seasons for the upcoming school year. Joint co-op agreements were approved for Obion County Central with South Fulton in girls soccer and Harriman with Rockwood in soccer. A proposed football cooperative between Mt. Juliet Christian Academy and RePublic High School failed on a 6-6 vote. A cooperative request in girls basketball for Grainger and Washburn high schools was also denied.
Tennessee Nature Academy was approved for membership, effective immediately—with the caveat that they remain ineligible for postseason play this school year. The board also approved Ridgeview High School for membership beginning in the 2027-28 school year.
The full minutes from the meeting can be found below.
- Approved the Minutes of the June 9-10, 2026, meeting without reading since members had been sent a copy for review.
- Approved naming the Board room in the new building the Mike Reed Board Room.
- Approved only allowing Classification Appeals to be heard at the November 19, 2026, Board of Control meeting unless the appeal is requested on behalf of a school by a member of the Board of Control.
- Approved the proposed budget for the 2026-27 school year.
- Approved the final Division II Financial Aid Report for the 2025-26 school year.
- Charged the staff to add deadlines in the sports regulations for all team sports that must be met for schools to add a new team sport in order to be eligible for the post-season.
- Tabled the item regarding participation on school teams outside of the sport's season and directed the state office to work on the specific language.
- Voted to keep the current tournament format for the Division I Basketball District Tournament 3rd and 4th place game.
- Approved Farragut High School's request for a format change for the Region 2 Basketball Tournament.
- Approved Valor Collegiate's request for an exception to the Independent Game Participation Rule for a senior girls soccer player to represent her home country in the U19 Pan American Cup.
- Approved Obion County Central High School and South Fulton High School's request for an exception to the Cooperative Program Rule to form a cooperative program in girls soccer with OCCHS serving as the host school.
- The motion to approve Mt. Juliet Christian Academy and RePublic High School's request for an exception to the Cooperative Program Rule in football with a one-year exception and a post-season ban failed on a 6-6 vote.
- Denied Grainger High School and Washburn High School's request for an exception to the Cooperative Program Rule in girls basketball for the 2026-27 school year only.
- Approved Harriman High School and Rockwood High School's request for an exception to form a cooperative agreement in soccer and girls soccer.
- Approved moving the first contest date for girls and boys lacrosse one week earlier for the 2026-27 school year only, with no change to the first practice date or number of allowed contests.
- Approved Ridgeview High School's request for TSSAA membership for the 2027-28 school year and for inclusion in the new classifications.
- Approved Tennessee Nature Academy's request for TSSAA membership effective immediately and for inclusion in the next classification alignment, understanding they will not be eligible for post-season this school year.
- Denied Donald Wray Rodgers' appeal of the suspension of his registration as a TSSAA official.
