MHSAA Membership
May 9, 2016
May is the month that begins membership renewal in the Michigan High School Athletic Association, when the 2016-17 Membership Resolution is mailed to school districts across the state.
New for 2016-17 is that schools may join the MHSAA at the 6th-grade level and up (not 7th). This change, resulting from a 561 to 87 vote by member school principals last October, has three obvious benefits:
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Makes it easier for small schools to include 6th-graders in their counts and on their 7th- and 8th-grade teams.
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Makes it easier for districts where 6th-graders are in buildings with 7th- and 8th-graders to participate on those junior high/middle school teams.
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Allows all districts, but requires no districts, to provide athletic opportunities for 6th-graders under the auspices of the MHSAA (on separate teams or with 7th- and 8th-graders).
Membership in the MHSAA is optional. It is a choice schools make through their local governing boards. Schools may conduct a comprehensive program of interscholastic athletics and may participate against MHSAA member schools in regular-season competition without joining the MHSAA.
Membership in the MHSAA is free of charge. There are no membership dues. While MHSAA tournaments are limited to MHSAA member high schools in good standing, there are no tournament entry fees for qualifying schools. Catastrophic Accident Medical Insurance and Concussion Care Insurance is purchased by the MHSAA and provided free of charge to all eligible student-athletes in grades 6 through 12. It applies to all levels of MHSAA sports in both practice and competition.
The expectations of member schools include:
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Educating student-athletes, staff and other involved personnel about MHSAA rules and procedures.
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Monitoring compliance year-around.
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Investigating possible violations and reporting findings.
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Administering penalties.
Summer Safety
July 23, 2018
(This blog first appeared on August 28, 2012.)
As we have been considering changes for in-season football practice rules that are more in step with recent recommendations of the National Athletic Trainers Association, the American Academy of Pediatrics and the National Federation of State High School Associations, as well as the actions of several of our counterpart state organizations across the U.S., we have also been looking at the rules that apply out of season to assure they do not work against the preparation of students for a safe experience.
Except during the school’s designated summer dead period of at least seven consecutive days, football coaches may interact with any number of players in voluntary weight training and conditioning sessions as frequently as they desire. Introduce footballs and helmets, and the coach can still work with any number of students on the sideline and up to seven players at a time for any number of days. Add competition, and the coach can still work with up to seven players at a time for a maximum of seven days. In addition, football coaches may participate for a maximum of 10 days at bona fide football camps where any number of their players are participating.
Plenty of time for coaches to teach, and even more time for players to train. During this time, the rules permit students to wear helmets, which protect against accidental collisions during drills; but the rules prohibit other pads that would allow activities to escalate to the point where contact is expected, leading to increased blows to the head at a time when the objective from the pros to Pop Warner is to reduce blows to the head.
When the brief preseason down time begins Aug. 1, the coach continues to be able to work with any number of players in conditioning and weight training. The down time prohibits those activities that could be a disguise for practice prior to the earliest allowed practice date – open gyms, camps, clinics and competition. The down time puts the emphasis where it’s most needed for a healthy student experience when practice actually begins: that’s weight training and conditioning.
Some critics may focus on what they can’t do in the summer; but clearly, there’s much they can do, and it’s all designed to help players improve and excel in a safe environment.