The Illinois High School Association (IHSA) Board of Directors met for its regularly scheduled meeting, which included both virtual and in-person attendance, on Monday, December 13, 2021. During the meeting, the Board approved eight action items:
ACTION ITEMS
1. The Board approved a recommendation to rescind Board action from August 2021 regarding its interpretation of IHSA By-law 1.120-B. In August 2021, the IHSA Board interpreted that any school placed on probation from the Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE) was ineligible to compete in the IHSA State Series while on probation. Following changes to the ISBE probationary process and further examination of the IHSA Constitution, the Board has changed their interpretation and will allow schools on ISBE probation to continue to participate in the IHSA State Series. If a school moves from ISBE probationary status to losing its ISBE recognition, it will no longer be eligible to participate in the IHSA State Series until its recognition status is restored.
2. The Board approved a recommendation to approve a $1 price ticket increase on all State Series rounds where GoFan digital ticketing is currently required and eliminate the GoFan convenience fee for fans. The IHSA will pay the difference in the convenience fee, creating a singular price for all tickets, digital or cash.
3. The Board approved a recommendation to add a non-voting liaison seat to the IHSA Board of Directors that will be reserved for a representative from Chicago Public Schools when no CPS school is represented on the IHSA Board of Directors. The CPS Sports Administration office will determine the liaison.
IHSA Executive Director Craig Anderson:
“For the first time in many years, the IHSA Board of Directors has no members from Chicago Public Schools (CPS). CPS is the largest district in the state and represents over 10 percent of all IHSA member schools. We believe it is important to have a voice representing CPS in the room when our Board meets and have invited CPS Executive Director of Sports Administration David Rosengard to personally fill this non-voting liaison role or assign an appropriate individual to it.”
4. The Board approved a recommendation to host the 2022 IHSA Girls Badminton State Finals at Hinsdale South High School. Hinsdale South hosted the 2021 State Finals as well. The tournament will go through its normal host bid process following this year’s tournament.
5. The Board approved an update to the Baseball and Softball Terms & Conditions that prohibits artificial noisemakers at State Series contests in both sports.
6. The Board approved a recommendation to dissolve a Cooperative agreement between Illini Central High School and Greenview High School in girls softball.
7. The Board approved a recommendation to renew an emergency COVID line of credit for an additional two years.
8. The Board approved a recommendation to conduct a feasibility study to investigate terminating the IHSA’s Defined Benefit Plan, which was frozen in 2009, by making it self-sustaining via investment allocation.
APPEALS & ELIGIBILITY RULINGS
1. The Board sustained the Executive Director’s ruling on a student from Joliet (West). The student was ruled ineligible for non-compliance with IHSA By-law 3.030.
2. The Board sustained the Executive Director’s ruling on a student from Chicago (Jones). The student was ruled ineligible for non-compliance with IHSA By-law 3.030.
3. The Board sustained the Executive Director’s ruling on a student from Chicago (Marist). The student was ruled ineligible for non-compliance with IHSA By-law 3.043.3.
4. The Board sustained the Executive Director’s ruling on a student from Marion. The student made a request for accommodation of a fifth year of athletic eligibility.
5. The Board overturned the Executive Director’s ruling on a student from Wilmington. The student was ruled immediately eligible after serving a period of ineligibility since the start of the school year.
6. The Board sustained the Executive Director’s ruling on a student from Champaign (Centennial). The student was ruled ineligible for non-compliance with IHSA By-law 3.030.
DISCUSSION ITEMS
At each meeting of the Board of Directors, there are certain items the Board discusses, but upon which no action is taken, or that action may not be required. The following is a report of those items from the December 13, 2021, agenda:
1. Representatives from the accounting firm, Striegel Knobloch & Co LLC, presented the annual audit to the Board. The audit can be reviewed by clicking here.
2. The Board heard a report on the seven proposals moved forward to the All-School Ballot by the Legislative Commission at their second meeting on November 23. Member schools have from November 29 to December 13 to vote online. To see the seven proposals, click here.
3. The Board discussed masking mandates in IHSA basketball as it relates to the Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH) All-Sports Policy.
4. The Board discussed online seeding dates in all IHSA sports.
5. The Board discussed the implementation of a shot clock in varsity boys and girls basketball. The NFHS will allow for the usage of a shot clock beginning in 2022-23. The IHSA held discussions and surveyed member school administrators on the shot clock at Town Hall meetings in November. The survey results, based on 600 schools responding (In 2020-21, 649 IHSA schools participated in boys basketball and 608 in girls basketball), were as follows:
- Nineteen percent (19%) of the respondees supported implementing the shot clock in 2022-23.
- Forty-seven percent (47%) of the respondees supported using the shot clock experimentally at regular-season tournaments in 2022-23.
- Fifty-four percent (54%) of the respondees supported the Board developing a timeline to implement the shot clock in the future.
The Basketball Advisory Committee will review the survey information in April. The Board will discuss the shot clock again at their meeting in June, where they are expected to take action to provide further direction on a shot clock plan.
6. The Board discussed a request for an exception to NFHS Wrestling Rule 4-5-2 by the Fox Valley Conference, but took no action.
7. The Board discussed conducting appeal hearings on a separate date from regularly scheduled Board meetings.
8. The Board heard a report on the IHSA’s attendance at the 2021 Illinois Association of School Boards conference.
9. The Board heard a report from the Executive Director on the 11 States Meeting held December 6-8 in Chicago.
10. The Board heard a report from the Executive Director on the Let’s Connect meeting scheduled to be held in Rosemont in early January.