Rep Council Wrap-Up: Winter 2019
March 28, 2019
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
An adjustment to the Ice Hockey Tournament schedule was the most notable action taken by the Representative Council of the Michigan High School Athletic Association during its annual Winter Meeting on March 22 in Grand Rapids, while a number of additional topics were discussed in advance of expected votes at its next meeting.
The Winter Meeting frequently serves as an opportunity for the Council to discuss items expected to come up for action at its final meeting of the school year, scheduled for May 5-6. However, a proposal from the MHSAA’s Ice Hockey Committee required immediate action as it affects the 2019-20 regular and postseason, and schools are in the midst of building their schedules for that sport.
The Council approved a proposal that will change the number of weeks for the MHSAA Tournament in ice hockey from two to three, spreading the maximum of six games that may be played from the start of Regionals through Finals over 20 days instead of the previous 13. This change goes into effect with the 2019-20 tournament.
The dates for the start of the regular season and Finals (second Saturday in March) will remain the same, as will the total number of regular-season games allowed. However, the MHSAA Tournament will begin on the third Monday before the Finals instead of two weeks before.
Also concerning tournaments, the Council heard updates on proposed seeding plans from the Basketball and Soccer Committees, along with a summary of how seeding currently is utilized in boys lacrosse and team wrestling. The Council also discussed a Football Committee recommendation that would change the strength-of-schedule formula used to determine qualifiers for the MHSAA 11-Player Playoffs, and reviewed results of a survey of varsity head coaches on the topic. Both seeding proposals and the football strength-of-schedule proposal will be voted upon in May.
In advance of the new sport-specific transfer rule taking effect with the 2019-20 school year, the Council considered possible adjustments that may need to be made beforehand, including ones regarding residential changes. The possible changes would go into effect with the new transfer rule and will require action at the Spring Meeting.
The Council heard a report on mental health initiatives being formulated by staff, which has conducted a pair of meetings and received valuable input from a variety of parties with interest and expertise in this area. The Council also received an update on how other states are considering esports and reported responses staff has received from school administrators and others with current or potentially future involvement.
The Representative Council is the legislative body of the MHSAA. All but five members are elected by member schools. Four members are appointed by the Council to facilitate representation of females and minorities, and the 19th position is occupied by the Superintendent of Public Instruction or designee.
The MHSAA is a private, not-for-profit corporation of voluntary membership by more than 1,500 public and private senior high schools and junior high/middle schools which exists to develop common rules for athletic eligibility and competition. No government funds or tax dollars support the MHSAA, which was the first such association nationally to not accept membership dues or tournament entry fees from schools. Member schools which enforce these rules are permitted to participate in MHSAA tournaments, which attract more than 1.4 million spectators each year.
MHSAA Survey Shows Continued Lower Rate of Schools Charging Participation Fees During 2021-22
By
Geoff Kimmerly
MHSAA.com senior editor
July 28, 2022
Although participation in high school sports rebounded significantly at Michigan High School Athletic Association schools during the 2021-22 school year, the percentage of member schools charging participation fees remained near its lowest of the last two decades after a major reduction during 2020-21 when fall and winter activities were affected by COVID-19.
Only 40 percent of MHSAA member schools charged participation fees during the 2021-22 school year, following 41 percent using them during 2020-21 – after 48 percent of member schools reported charging them during the 2019-20 school year, when athletics operated normally until the pandemic resulted in a shutdown that March. The dips into the low 40s were the lowest percentages of schools assessing fees since the 2006-07 school year.
The MHSAA participation fee survey has measured the prevalence of charging students to help fund interscholastic athletics annually since the 2003-04 school year. The percentage of member schools charging fees crossed 50 percent in 2010-11 and reached a high of 56.6 percent in 2013-14 before falling back to 50 percent or below during recent years.
Of the 690 schools (92 percent of membership) which responded to the 2021-22 survey, 279 assessed a participation fee, while 411 did not during the past school year. For the purposes of the survey, a participation fee was anything $20 or more regardless of what the school called the charge (registration fee, insurance fee, transportation fee, etc.).
Class A schools remained the largest group charging fees, with 57 percent of respondents doing so. Class B and Class C schools followed, with 39 and 34 percent charging fees, respectively, and 33 percent of Class D schools also charged for participation.
Among schools assessing fees, a standardized fee for each team on which a student-athlete participates – regardless of the number of teams – has shown for a number of years to be the most popular method, with that rate at 46 percent of schools with fees for 2021-22. Next were 32 percent of assessing schools charging a one-time standardized fee per student-athlete, followed by 14 percent assessing fees based on tiers of the number of sports a student-athlete plays (for example, charging a larger fee for the first team and less for additional sports).
The amounts of participation fees have remained relatively consistent over the last decade. For 2021-22, the median annual maximum fee per student was $150, and the median maximum fee per family was $300. The median fee assessed by schools that charge student-athletes once per year was $120, and the median fee for schools that assess per team on which a student-athlete plays was $75.
The survey for 2021-22 and surveys from previous years can be found on the MHSAA Website. Click for the full 2021-22 survey report.
As reported earlier this month, participation in MHSAA-sponsored sports rebounded 6.6 percent in 2021-22 from the previous school year.
The MHSAA is a private, not-for-profit corporation of voluntary membership by more than 1,400 public and private senior high schools and junior high/middle schools which exists to develop common rules for athletic eligibility and competition. No government funds or tax dollars support the MHSAA, which was the first such association nationally to not accept membership dues or tournament entry fees from schools. Member schools which enforce these rules are permitted to participate in MHSAA tournaments, which attract more than 1.4 million spectators each year.