Page 102 - 2023-24 By-Laws

Rule 18 - Scholarship

RULE 18 – SCHOLARSHIP
Philosophy
Realizing that the age group served by high school represents an interval in human
development that can be turbulent and complex, the IHSAA is concerned with educating
the “whole person.” Therefore, the primary focus of any Indiana Secondary School should
be to provide educational opportunities for its students in accordance with the requirements
set forth by the Indiana Department of Education. This academic training should progress
toward an adequate education and ultimately in earning a high school diploma. Participation in
interschool programs is a privilege for which reasonable standards should be established and
enforced for the educational and personal welfare of the students who participate. If students
cannot successfully carry and pass a normal minimum load of formal classroom work and
simultaneously undertake the extra demands upon time and energy required by interschool
participation, they should postpone their commitment to interschool programs and concentrate
time and effort on achieving in the classroom. On the basis of these premises, minimum
academic achievement requirements have been established by the IHSAA. Hopefully, the
minimum academic eligibility standards adopted will:
a. promote higher educational standards;
b. upgrade student academic performance;
c. counter public criticism of schools for low expectations and low student achievement; and
d. enable schools to use athletic participation as a motivator for better classroom performance
and achievement.
18-1 Minimum Course Enrollment and Grades for Participation
To be eligible scholastically, students must have received passing grades and earned credit at
the end of their last Grading Period in School in at least Seventy percent (70%) of the maximum
number of full credit subjects that a student can take and must be currently Enrolled in at least
Seventy percent (70%) of the maximum number of full credit subjects that a student can take.
a. The preceding notwithstanding, a student must have been Enrolled in a minimum of Four
(4) full credit courses during the last Grading Period, and must be Enrolled in a minimum
of Four (4) full credit subjects (or the equivalent) during the current Grading Period, unless
a Block Four schedule is used, and then the student’s Enrollment must be in a minimum
of Three (3) full credit courses.
b. If grades reported at an Eligibility Certification Date include both Grading Period grades
and semester grades, then semester grades take precedence for eligibility purposes.
c. A student may use up to Two (2) semesters of the state-required physical education course
for eligibility purposes, with each semester’s course counting as One (1) full credit.
d. Physical education credit earned by participation on an athletic team, may not count toward
academic eligibility.
e. Class periods must meet Indiana Department of Education standards.
f. In the event a School establishes minimum academic requirements which are greater
than the IHSAA academic requirements, the IHSAA will consider those higher academic
requirements to constitute the IHSAA academic requirements at such School, and will
require that a student at that School meet those greater academic requirements before
that student is eligible scholastically under this rule.
Enrollment and Passing Chart
Block
Four
If the maximum number of 4 4 5 6 7 8 9
daily instructional periods:
Then the minimum number of 3 4 4 5 5 6 7
classes student must take are:
And the minimum number of 3 3 4 5 5 6 7
classes student must pass are:

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