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OHSAA Membership Approves Seven of Nine
Referendum Issues
Changes to Transfer
Bylaw Approved; Competitive Balance Issue Fails for Third Consecutive
Year
COLUMBUS, Ohio — Seven of the nine proposed Ohio High School Athletic
Association constitution and bylaw revisions passed as voted upon by
OHSAA member schools, Commissioner Daniel B. Ross, Ph.D., has
announced. Highlighting the voting was approval of a significant change
to the transfer bylaw, but a proposal to change how schools are placed
into their tournament divisions for team sports failed for the third
consecutive year. Overall, changes were approved to two constitution
items and five bylaw items.
The change to the OHSAA transfer bylaw reduces the penalty for transfer
from one year to the first 50 percent of the maximum allowable regular
season contests in any sports in which the student participated the
previous year and reduces the number of exceptions for immediate
eligibility. This change, which will be applied both retroactively and
prospectively, passed 346 votes to 288 and becomes effective June 1,
2013.
Highlighting the two bylaw issues that did not pass was a proposal to
change how schools are assigned to tournament divisions in the team
sports of football, soccer, volleyball, basketball, baseball and
softball to address competitive balance. Rather than place schools into
OHSAA tournament divisions based strictly on male or female enrollment,
an adjusted enrollment count would have been used. The adjusted count
would have been derived by multiplying a sport specific factor by the
number of students in grades 9 through 12 on each specific team roster
whose parents reside outside the public school district or the
attendance zone of the school, then adding that number to the original
enrollment count. The competitive balance proposal failed 327 to 308
(51.5 percent to 48.5 percent). Other similar competitive balance
proposals failed 339 to 301 (53 percent to 47 percent) in 2012 and 332
to 303 (52 percent to 48 percent) in 2011. Approval of this year’s
proposed amendment would have been implemented in 2015.
“When this new proposal was placed on the ballot, we said at the
time that the vote would come down to the wire, and it certainly did,”
Ross said, “It’s disappointing that it did not pass because we believed
this formula addressed the main issue to which schools voiced concern:
the impact on athletic success by students on a school’s team roster
who are from outside that school’s geographic boundary or attendance
zone.
“As everyone is aware, this is the third year in a row a
competitive balance proposal has been narrowly defeated. I will be
consulting with our Board of Directors to see what action, if any, we
take next, but I anticipate at a minimum that a proposal on separate
tournaments for public and non-public schools will again be placed on
the ballot next spring via the petition process.”
A proposal that called for all OHSAA tournaments to be conducted
separately for public schools and non-public schools was removed from
this year’s ballot in late March when the OHSAA and the petition
originator, together with representatives from his group, mutually
worked to reach a resolution on the issue. It was replaced by the
latest competitive balance proposal.
“I believe separation of our tournaments is not the best option,” Ross
added. “That being said, I also believe almost 50 percent of our member
schools believe some type of change is needed, but no one seems to have
the answer for what change would satisfy the most people. One thing
seems pretty certain, though: this issue is not going to go away. It’s
something in which many, many other states are also struggling to find
an answer.”
All nine 2013 proposals were placed up for referendum vote by the OHSAA
Board of Directors. High school principals had between May 1 and 15 to
cast their votes on eight of the issues, and one issue was voted upon
by 7th- and 8th-grade principals. A simple majority is all that is
required for a proposed amendment to be adopted.
The complete final voting results are available on the OHSAA website
(ohsaa.org), and the 2013-14 OHSAA Constitution and Bylaws will be
posted on the site sometime in late June or early July.
A Review of the Other 2013 OHSAA Referendum Issues
Constitution 5, Governance — Changes the ex-officio member on the OHSAA
Board of Directors from the Ohio Interscholastic Athletic
Administrators Association (OIAAA) to a representative of the OIAAA
rather than the president-elect. Effective date: August 1, 2013.
551 in favor; 85 opposed
Constitution Article 8, Amendments to the Constitution and Bylaws — In
the event that a conflict would arise with Ohio state law or proposed
legislative action that necessitates an immediate change in the bylaws
or constitution, this change permits the Board to authorize an
emergency petition for vote of the membership to change or modify a
bylaw or article of the constitution. Effective date: August 1, 2013.
561 in favor; 75 opposed
Bylaw 4-3, Enrollment and Attendance — Adds a note preceding Section 3
to clarify enrollment status; amends exception 7 of Bylaw 4-3-1 to note
that students who attend STEM schools are also subject to the transfer
bylaws, and modifies Bylaw 4-3-2 to make it clear that the bylaw
applies only to the application of the semester bylaws within this
section and also clarifies that a student is still considered to have
transferred whenever his or her enrollment is changed to another high
school, even if the student has not been officially withdrawn from the
former high school. Effective date: June 1, 2013.
557 in favor; 79 opposed
Bylaw 4-6-3, Residence — Adds language that would permit the
Commissioner’s Office to grant eligibility to a student who moves into
Ohio with an individual who has had legal custody of the student for
more than one year and the parents do not reside in Ohio. The student
would not be eligible until ruled so by the Commissioner’s Office. This
also adds another exception that addresses an unusual situation in
which a United States citizen, who is precluded from obtaining a J-1
visa due to his or her U.S. citizenship, cannot study in the United
States for one year when the parents are not U.S. citizens and live
outside the United States . This exception would permit just one year
of participation in interscholastic athletics. Effective August 1, 2013.
562 opposed; 71 in favor
Bylaw 4-9, Recruiting — This proposal would have permitted open houses
to take place in specified facilities other than just the high school
campus.
324 opposed; 309 in favor
Bylaw 4-10, Amateur — Modifies the bylaw by permitting students to
receive travel expenses to competitions from sponsors that are not
connected with their school. Effective date: June 1, 2013.
460 in favor; 171 opposed
Bylaw 4-4-5, Scholarship (7th-8th Grade Issue) — Adds exceptions 1 and
2 to this scholarship bylaw to track the same provisions that are found
in the high school scholarship bylaw (waiver for a student who has been
withdrawn of removed from school due to accident, illness or family
hardship; ability to restore eligibility when an ‘incomplete’ has been
received in one or more courses due to calamity days, family tragedy or
illness/accident and the ‘incomplete’ is recorded in accordance with
board policy). Effective date: August 1, 2013.
347 in favor; 183 opposed
823 high school ballots were mailed, 667 ballots were returned
including 4 invalid and 27 past the deadline (81 percent)
765 7th-8th grade ballots were mailed, 369 ballots were returned
including 4 invalid (48.2 percent)
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