06/05/18 – Bylaw 6 (Transfer Rule) Reminders

June 5, 2018 2017-2018 News Releases

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: June 5, 2018

The KHSAA has received several inquiries from various parts of the state relative to the potential transferring of student-athletes among and between KHSAA member schools. With the end of the school year upon us, a few reminders concerning the rules and regulations should be highlighted.

• The rules that govern students and their play are made by the member schools. The 280 member schools across the state comprise the KHSAA, not its 14 full-time staff members.
• These rules have been approved as state regulation (therefore having the force of law) and are incorporated by reference as part of 702 KAR 7:065.

Transfer rule

• The transfer rule is listed on the KHSAA website at https://khsaa.org/handbook/bylaws/20172018/bylaw6.pdf
• Bylaw 6 contains restrictions relative to students changing schools after they have BOTH been in grade nine AND played for a member school at the varsity level.
• A student who has not yet been in grade nine or has not yet participated at the varsity level has no restrictions on transfer within Bylaw 6.
• The restrictions on students who have both been in grade nine AND played for a member school require said individual to be ineligible for a period of one year from that student’s latest varsity participation.
• The one-year period of ineligibility may be waived if documentation can be made that one of 10 published exceptions has been met as listed in the rule (Section 2).
• Even if an exception has been satisfied, that exception can be negated and a waiver not granted if there is sufficient evidence of a transfer motivated by athletics as detailed in Section 3.
• A student transferring between schools below grade nine is not regulated by the KHSAA.
• A student initially entering grade nine has no transfer restriction, even if such student has played varsity in grades seven and/or eight.

Process Clarifications

• State regulations require that information submitted with respect to specific cases be in writing, and that those submitting information be available for any examination and cross examination if there is an appeal.
• As the agent of the Kentucky Department of Education, every action must be compliant with both state and Federal laws and regulations.
• The KHSAA staff is subject by its Board of Control to Kentucky open records requirements, and certainly will not discuss a students educational records in violation of FERPA and a myriad of other privacy regulations because of the age of involved students through any medium.
• In general, these are not students above the age of 18 (as perhaps in collegiate matters where people feel more free to discuss their opinions and interpretations of the facts).
• For these reasons, the KHSAA staff is not permitted to get into protracted discussions via text or social media and, in general, will not respond to accusations and innuendo.
• Restrictions on playing while eligibility determinations are pending apply solely to the period of time defined in Bylaw 23, the Limitation of Seasons.
• Persons willing to submit information concerning possible violations are welcome to do so in writing in compliance with KHSAA Bylaws 18 and 26 with appropriate contact information so as to be available for verification.

Recruiting/Undue Influence

• The recruiting restrictions are listed on the KHSAA website at https://khsaa.org/handbook/bylaws/20172018/bylaw16.pdf
• The KHSAA has defined limitations concerning impermissible benefits and illegal contact with students not enrolled in that specific school by any representative of the school or school athletic program including current players, families, coaches, teachers and administrators.
• Member school administrators and coaches have specific restrictions concerning contact with non-enrolled students with the first and most important procedure being to refer the prospective student to the administration of the school and cease any further discussions regarding athletic participation.
• If a student is enrolled in one member school and wishes to participate in summer or offseason instructional activities at another member school, the school conducting summer activities must receive written permission from the principal from the school in which the student is enrolled.

Practice/Play by Ineligible Students

• In the summer, practice and workouts are under local control, with the exception of the provisions of Bylaw 23 and 24 that prohibit non-enrolled students from participating at a member school without permission of the enrolled school.
• Restrictions on playing while rulings are in process are only in effect during the periods of time defined by Bylaw 23 for each sport.
• Practice/Play by ineligible students is spelled out for member schools in a document on the KHSAA website at https://khsaa.org/051017-reminders-about-students-practicingplaying-while-ineligible/
• Because the restrictions of each rule may vary, it is important that school administrators use this chart as guidance.

-KHSAA-

About the Kentucky High School Athletic Association
The Kentucky High School Athletic Association was organized in 1917 and is the agency designated by the Kentucky Department of Education to manage high school athletics in the Commonwealth. The Association is a voluntary nonprofit 501(c)3 organization made up of 280 member schools both public and private. The KHSAA sanctions 44 state championships in 13 sports and 5 sport-activities, licenses and trains over 4,000 officials, provides catastrophic insurance for its more than 70,000 member school student-athletes, as well as overseeing coaching education and sports safety programs.