09/27/23 – Clarifications about Participation in Individual Sports

October 2, 2023 Athletic Department Blog Updates

The KHSAA has received several inquiries pertaining to the participation in individual sports against home school students, club teams, students from other non-member schools or unattached/unaffiliated athletes from its member schools. It is the member school’s responsibility to understand the Bylaw 23 restrictions (Limitation of Seasons) and who the athletes are competing against;

IF EVENT IS HOSTED BY A KHSAA MEMBER SCHOOL OR IS A SCHOOL COMPETITION

• KHSAA Member schools cannot compete against schools or teams located in Kentucky who are eligible to join the KHSAA but have decided not to do so at this time.
• A list of current KHSAA member schools can be found here: SCHOOL DIRECTORY
• Member schools may, during the regular season, permit entries from homeschool units or homeschool students enrolled in Kentucky per state statute, provided they are on the approved list provided by the KHSAA: APPROVED HOME SCHOOL/GROUP
• Meets where all athletes are entered under the school name and team scoring will be calculated may not permit entries from unattached/unaffiliated individuals or individuals representing club teams located in Kentucky in the same scoring division with the member school teams. 
• If students not enrolled in KHSAA member schools (other than the approved home school students mentioned above) are permitted to enter in a different division, these unattached individuals must be nonscoring, be in separate divisions, and are not eligible for awards.
  • For reference, in 2022 the member schools of the KHSAA we given an opportunity to vote on Proposal 2022-2 which would have removed restrictions on playing non-member schools in Kentucky (other than the legislatively approved exception for home school students) and such proposal was defeated by the member schools with 66 votes in favor and 131 votes opposed.
  • You are also reminded that catastrophic insurance is only provided for these athletes entering any event who are enrolled in KHSAA schools and comply with KHSAA rules.
• There are no restrictions related to out-of-state non-member schools or competition against out-of-state entities of other structures, as that is a local school decision per Bylaw 22.
• Please note, any time schools provide transportation, pay entry fees, provide uniforms, or any of the other criteria listed in Bylaw 23, it counts as a school competition. Specifically, Case BL-23-16 outlines how to count a meet against the Limitation of Seasons in Cross Country, Swimming & Diving, and Track & Field.

IF EVENT IS HOSTED BY 3RD PARTY OR OUTSIDE ORGANIZATION

• Any time a student-athlete enters an event using the school name, wearing the school uniform, or other criteria listed in Bylaw 23, it counts as a school competition. 
• If the meet is scored, KHSAA member school athletes shall not be scored against (compete against) any unattached/unaffiliated or Club teams located in Kentucky and all results and awards shall be separate.
• If athletes participate in non-school competitions that do not count against the limitation of seasons because of the meet structure, you are reminded that there is no catastrophic insurance provided for these athletes at this event through the KHSAA.

– 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 290 member schools, both public and non-public. The KHSAA awards 229 state championships to 59 teams and 178 individuals in 13 sports and six sport-activities, funds catastrophic insurance coverage for its more than 109,000 rostered member school student-athletes, provides coaching education and sports safety programs for more than 12,000 coaches and licenses and facilitates the distribution of training material for over 4,000 contest officials.