AIA non-participation rule likely to get amended

October 22, 2019 by Jose Garcia, AZPreps365


The Arizona Interscholastic Association’s non-participation rule might get amended next month.

The rule prohibits the AIA’s member schools’ athletes from practicing or competing with other organizations during the high school season an athlete is participating in.

Athletes will be allowed to continue training with personal trainers during their high school seasons but only in a one-on-one setting. That was the recommendation the AIA made Monday during the monthly meeting of the AIA’s executive board.

“No other people can be there at the time of the workout,” said AIA executive director David Hines during the meeting. “No more group work. We will hold the student accountable if the rule is not followed and not the rest of the team.”

The AIA will seek feedback from its conference reps before the recommendation is voted on in the Nov. 18 board meeting.

Executive director report

The conference appeal process for the next two-year scheduling block began Monday and will continue Tuesday, said Hines during his monthly report to the board.

Thirty-one schools appealed their conference placement for the 2020-21, 2021-22 school years, with 11 of them appealing to move up. If a conference denies an appeal, a school can then request that the AIA’s board hear its appeal.

Hines also gave board members an update on the site and scheduling changes for some football and volleyball semifinal and championship games, inviting board members to participate in awarding the fall trophies after the championship games.

The Student Leadership Advisory Committee, the AIA’s student voice, is organizing a school spirit competition. 

Banners will be awarded to schools that demonstrate the best school spirit in school produced videos. After the winners are selected from each conference, SLAC will then pick a small school (1-3A) and big school (4-6A) winner.

The winners will be announced during the AIA’s annual Championship event in May. For the competition’s video requirements go here

Channel 12’s Friday Night Fever weekly football show is helping promote the competition. Channel 12 is also helping produce an AIA public service announcement about sportsmanship and encouraging students to take a timeout from social media to attend games, Hines said. 

The PSA will be narrated by one of the state’s biggest high school sports supporters, Channel 12’s Bruce Cooper.

During Hines’ report, AIA director of finance Denise Doser explained that Rough Rock Community High withdrew from the AIA because its enrollment dropped.

Ejections rule update

The AIA wants to institute harsher penalties for coaches and players who are ejected.

Ejections in the state continue to rise, with about 190 so far this fall season. From the end of the 2016-17 school year to last year, ejections climbed from 618 to 1,069.

Coaches accounted for about 20% of those ejections. To address the problem, the AIA wants to implement a tiered game suspension. 

Depending on the infraction a coach or player commits, they may face up to a three game suspension if the AIA’s Legislative Council gives the green light in March.

“We are not changing behavior,” said AIA state commissioner of officials Brian Gessner during the meeting. “We believe this tiered ejection process will change behavior.”

During the ejection discussion with the board, the AIA also clarified the postseason ejection appeal form, which the board approved as emergency legislation.

Membership comments

Arizona Lutheran athletic director David Peter and wrestling coach Steve Wene, Joseph City athletic director/wrestling coach Brad Fischer and Morenci wrestling coach Casey Woodall shared some concerns about the new conference realignment for wrestling.

They are worried that the small school wrestling programs won’t be able to compete against the schools with bigger enrollments that were placed in their division. The original wrestling placement had four divisions.

Hines said during his report that the AIA will seek input from the wrestling community before making a final decision on the divisions.

Agenda items approved

The following board agenda items were approved:

  • Forty-one contests and or program requests.
  • Four AIA lifetime passes.
  • Red Mountain’s maximum participation hardship request.
  • Additional game requests from six different schools.
  • Valley Christian’s request to exceed the number of quarters its girls basketball players can play in a day since it will only have 12 JV and varsity players to start the season.
  • A complimentary replacement pass for a Liberty coach.
  • Globe and Miami’s request for cooperative boys and girls soccer programs for the 2019-20 season.
  • The new school membership approvals of San Tan Foothills Charter and Vail Mica Mountain.

Not approved

Phoenix Valiant College Prep’s request to be accepted as an AIA associate member school was not accepted by the board.

The AIA’s member schools will now determine if Valiant can become an associate member.

Kingman Academy’s contest fine appeal was also not approved. Kingman Academy was assessed a fine for cancelling a JV and varsity game Lee Williams didn’t agree to cancel.

Note

Members of Cognia, an accreditation and certification non-profit for schools that was previously known as AdvancED and Measured Progress, made a presentation during the board meeting.

Toni Badone, a former AIA board member and superintendent of the the Yuma Union High School District, now works for Cognia and talked about the current and new opportunities Cognia provides.

School violations

The following are violations that schools self reported and discipline they received: 

Warning for Marana’s football program. A freshman football player didn’t complete the Brainbook course before participating in multiple practices and games.

Warning for St. Mary’s football program. The team violated heat acclimatization protocol when it used the tackle wheel for a drill before it was supposed to during the preseason.

Warning for Winslow’s football program. A JV football player didn’t register to play or complete the Brainbook course before practicing and playing in two games. The team forfeited the contest.

Warning for Sunrise Mountain’s badminton program. The coach failed to check if a player was cleared to play.

Warning for Mountain Pointe’s girls basketball program. The former head girls basketball coach violated the recruitment rule when he sent an email from an anonymous account (walterpayton12@yahoo.com) to a Chandler High parent/employee. According to the violation report, the email “encouraged” the parent to enroll his or her child at Mountain Pointe.

The student never transferred to Mountain Pointe.

Warning for Amphitheater’s football program. A JV player participated in a game before completed Brainbook certification.

Advisement for Liberty’s activities program. The head JV football coach didn’t leave the stadium immediately after being ejected. He was directed by the principal to go to the end zone to meet with him to talk about the ejection.

Advisement for Catalina’s activities program. A volunteer activities coach was coaching without district approval.

Advisement for Xavier College Prep’s cross country program. The team violated the number of meets in a season rule when two of its varsity teams competed on the same day at the Woodbridge California Cross Country Invitational.

Advisement for Payson’s activities program. A parent jumped over the track fence at Fountain Hills and “verbally accosted” one of the referees with time left on the clock. Payson has banned the parent from all 2019-20 athletic home and away events. The parent will need to take the National Federation of State High School Association’s Positive Sports Parenting course before his is allowed to attend future events.

Advisement for Willcox’s football program. The varsity football coach, two of his assistants and a middle school football coach held a workout with four players on a Sunday for an hour. High school teams are not allowed to practice, watch film or hold “chalk talks” on Sundays during the school year.

Abut AIA punishments

An advisement is a word of caution.

A warning places a school in jeopardy of being placed on probation if another violation of any rule or regulation is committed. A school will not be eligible for the Overall Excellence Award during a warning period.

If a school or one of its sports programs is placed on probation, that school/program is ineligible for the postseason and will not receive any award for achievement in that sport. A school is not eligible also for the Overall Excellence Award during its probation period.