Iowa Department of Education

  10^TH - 12^th Grade Students

5.  What is the result for a student who is competing in basketball and does not pass all after the first grading period?

The student is ineligible for the next 30 calendar days of competition in basketball.  The period of ineligibility starts on the first day of the next grading period.

6.  Same as above, but the student has a hunch that she failed a course, so she never picks up her report card.

The student cannot postpone her ineligibility. She is out for the next 30 calendar days of competition in basketball, whether or not she receives the report card. The same is true for report cards that get lost in the mail or are eaten by the dog. The period of ineligibility starts on the first day of the next grading period.

7.  When there is no doubt that a student is going to receive an "F" as a final grade, can the school let the student know before grades are actually issued so that the period of ineligibility starts sooner?

The school may let the student know about the failing grade, but the period of ineligibility starts on the first day of the next grading period.  That is, a school may not move up the period of ineligibility for a student by giving the student advance knowledge of the student's final grades.  If a school has an ineligible student start his/her period of ineligibility earlier than the first day of the next grading period, the ineligibility will NOT end any sooner than the 31^st day of the new grading period.

8.  What is the result for a student whose only sport is wrestling (or any fall or winter sport) and he does not pass all after the final grading period (e.g., second semester)?

The student is ineligible for the first 30 calendar days of competition in wrestling the next year. However, if the student decides to go out for cross country (or any other sport) for the first time the next year, the student's period of ineligibility will be applied to that sport.

9.  What is the result for a student whose only sport is football (or any fall sport) and he does not pass all on his first semester report card but gets all "A"s on the second semester report card?

      The student is ineligible for the first 30 calendar days of competition in football the next year.

10.  What is the result for a student who competes in wrestling or boys swimming and he does not pass all on his first semester report card?

The student is ineligible for the next 30 calendar days of competition in his sport (wrestling or swimming). If the season ends before 30 calendar days expire, the extra days carry over to the next sport in which the student competes.

 
Example 1: Grades from first semester are issued January 16, a Friday. Second semester starts on Tuesday, January 20.  Rick, a wrestler, has an "F" as a final grade. His ineligibility starts on Tuesday, January 20.  Wrestling season ends on the Saturday of the state dual team tournament (in 2009 this will be February 28). All of Rick's 30 calendar days of ineligibility are used up during the wrestling season.

 
Example 2: Same as above, except Rick is a swimmer. Swim season ends February 14, the date of the state meet. There are 26 calendar days from January 20 to February 14, so Rick has four more days of ineligibility to serve. These days shall be applied to the next sport in which Rick competes.

11.  What is the result for a student who competes in spring golf and does not pass all on the second semester report card?

The student is ineligible for the next 30 calendar days of competition in her sport (golf), and any "unexpired" days of ineligibility carry over to the next sport in which the student competes.

 
Example: Grades from second semester are issued May 31. Carol, a golfer and swimmer, does not pass all. She is ineligible for the girls state golf meet on June 1-2, as well as the state coed golf meet on June 9. She has 21 calendar days of ineligibility that shall apply to the first 21 calendar days of the fall swim season.

 
12.  In the above example where final grades are issued so closely to the student's next athletic contest, how can a school ensure that it does not inadvertently allow an ineligible student to compete?

      The burden is on school officials to talk to teachers and make sure that ineligible students do not compete.  Where a competition is schedule within a day or a few days of the end of a grading period, coaches and athletic directors should be talking to teachers to identify any students who are vulnerable to not passing.  Inasmuch as allowing an ineligible student to compete exposes the school to penalties by IHSAA or IGHSAU, including forfeiture, it is in the school's best interests to take all possible means to check on final grades.

13.  What is the result for a senior whose only sport has been volleyball (or any fall sport that concludes before end of first semester) and she does not pass all on her first semester report card?

Under the former "bona fide competitor" requirement, there would have been no "penalty."  Under the new rule, the student is ineligible for the first 30 calendar days of any interscholastic sport in which she competes.

14.  If a student competes in two sports simultaneously (cross country and volleyball; golf and track; etc.) and becomes ineligible during or for the season, is the student ineligible for 30 calendar days for both sports?

         Yes. The student is ineligible for all sports during the 30 calendar day period of ineligibility.

15.  If a student competed solely in track as a 9^th grader, did not pass all coursework at the end of second semester, and decides not to compete in track again but to go out for golf, is the student eligible for golf?

No. The period of ineligibility now applies to any interscholastic sport in which the student seeks to compete.