CHAPEL HILL – The winter meeting of the North Carolina High School Athletic Association’s Board of Directors concluded on Thursday, Dec. 5, at the NCHSAA Offices. Over the course of the two-day meeting, the Directors met and discussed agenda items, with action taken on Thursday.
Wednesday, the Board of Directors discussed a proposal to create separate classifications for Charter and Non-Boarding Parochial schools. The Board decided to table that discussion and move forward with the current plan to transition from four classes to eight classes beginning with the 2025-2026 school year. That process is already underway, and conference realignment drafts will be presented to the Realignment Committee in the coming weeks.
The Board of Directors also tabled a discussion to sanction Women’s Flag Football. The sports growing popularity in North Carolina has prompted sanctioning discussions; however, current participation data as reported by the schools does not match data reported from other sources. Final data must satisfy the NCHSAA requirements to culminate in a state championship. Commissioner Que Tucker noted on Thursday that the NCHSAA is not opposed to Flag Football and has no doubt it will eventually become a sanctioned championship sport.
On Thursday morning, Kyle Stinson, senior at Seaforth High School and member of both the NCHSAA Student-Athlete Advisory Council and the National Federation of High School Association’s National Student Advisory Council, made a presentation on the growth of the SAAC Program in North Carolina and the accomplishments of the members of that council.
The Board also heard reports from the North Carolina Coaches Association, the North Carolina Athletic Directors Association, the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction, and the Regional Supervisors Advisory Committee.
On Thursday, the Board of Directors took the following action:
Finance and Personnel
- Approved the 2023-24 audit as presented by Blackman & Sloop, CPAs
- Approved the 2024-25 Annual Operating Budget
Policy
- Approved requiring a minimum of three calendar days between football contests
- Amended the ejection policy so that student-athletes may remain in the team area for supervision after disqualification or ejection, effective immediately
- Modified the master eligibility sheet to only list names of certified coaches, effective 2025-26 School Year
Review and Officiating
- Instated full game fee payment to officials when they arrive for a contest, which is delayed one hour past the original start time and the game is not played, effective for the Spring 2025 Season
- The clarified language that any person under 18 or still in high school cannot be assigned to officiate NCHSAA contests, effective January 1
- Moved official assignment duties to the NCHSAA Director of Officiating Services for all playoff rounds after round two for softball, baseball, lacrosse, and volleyball, effective January 1
Sports
- In Men’s Golf, four team members can now score as a team in regionals if they qualify for regionals as individuals
- Will begin to track yellow and red cards in soccer through DragonFly, effective Spring 2025 Season
- Capped the number of Women’s Wrestling regular season matches at 55, effective immediately
- In Wrestling, removed the five stoppages before disqualification during blood time, effective January 1
