KHSAA opens door to potential change in its high school athlete transfer rules
Transfers of student athletes at the college level have become a matter of fact in today’s sports world. But at the high school level, there remain a number of restrictions on how a student athlete can become eligible at a new school.
The Kentucky High School Athletic Association might soon consider changes to its bylaws to allow students one free transfer in their athletic career, regardless of circumstance. The students could change schools and become immediately eligible without review one time after playing varsity in the ninth grade. Current rules restrict such movement with certain exceptions.
“We’re not trying to debate the issue today, we’re trying to find out, ‘Do you all want us to bring you back what that might look like and let you really chew on it?” KHSAA Commissioner Julian Tackett asked the Board of Control during its regularly scheduled work session Wednesday.
Tackett told the board that transfer cases have numbered 1,400 to 1,500 this school year, a vast increase over the 800 it normally sees by this point in the calendar. It has become a logistical burden to not only the KHSAA, but to school administrators at the local level, he said.
“We’ve had a lot of feedback from administrators about potentially a rule proposal for the schools to consider that would allow an athlete to transfer one time … without restriction,” Tackett said.
After the free transfer, the board could decide to keep the current transfer restrictions and exceptions in place. That typically means athletes must sit out one season in their sport if they change schools, unless there is a bona fide change of address or another approved reason. That’s why, for instance, Madison Central’s Hagan Harrison could play quarterback last fall for the Indians, but is sitting out this year from the boys’ basketball team. He played basketball for Montgomery County a year ago, but not football.
Among the problems the KHSAA faces is inconsistent information from member schools about transfers, Tackett said.
“Our schools have us with one hand tied behind your back because of their inconsistency in how they do the process,” he said. “They don’t always tell the complete truth. They might not fabricate, but they don’t always tell the complete truth. They don’t investigate. And they simply transfer the blame. With 280 (schools) you’re going to have a percentage do that.”
That leaves the KHSAA with a credibility issue on transfers, Tackett acknowledged. Adding to that are the cases that get overturned on appeal, many times based on information that comes to light only in the hearing rather than the initial materials provided by the schools.
Angela Passafiume, a board member and Mercy Academy athletic director, said she has been in a number of those hearings and the revelation at last month’s board meeting that upward of 80 percent of them allow athletes to play after their initial eligibility is denied is disturbing.
“We’re wasting a lot of time and a lot of money on something that’s not effective,” she said.
Tackett responded.
“And here’s the challenge with that — who paid the price for that?” Tackett asked, rhetorically. “The student didn’t get to play for something that probably, had the school been more forthcoming with what they said at the hearing, they would have been eligible anyway.”
Critics of allowing free transfer argue that it would kick the door wide open to athletic recruiting among schools. The KHSAA bylaws already address recruiting issues, but there is an acknowledgement that it’s hard to stop within those existing rules.
“I think that there are areas of our state that we’re less than honest if we don’t say they ignore it, because next year, it’ll be their turn,” Tackett said, offering a theoretical example of a real-life scenario. “Next year will be their turn. It’s just, it’s almost a way of dealing with it. OK. Get yours. I’ll get mine next time.”
That’s one of the reasons Tackett offered as an example of why a free transfer rule could be more of a problem.
“So, I don’t know. I’m not sure it’d work. I don’t know,’ he said.
Other states already allow transfer waivers like the one the KHSAA could consider. And Tackett noted that cracking down on transfers was something the KHSAA’s member schools rejected the last time it came up.
“Four years ago I believe it was, you all asked us to work on a proposal for the schools that would tighten down transfer restrictions, add investigative pieces to it, add some school obligations — by gosh, we wanted to tighten down,” Tackett said. “Our schools voted that down. They didn’t want to do all this investigating.”
There’s also a potential conflict looming from legislation being considered in the General Assembly that would allow vastly expanded school choice throughout the state. There already are a few open districts now, but if school choice widens, it places the KHSAA as a barrier to the freedom of movement the legislature seems to want, Tackett said.
“It’s going to be difficult to uncouple the fact that they can transfer school types, but they don’t get all the privileges that come with that. … It’s gonna be really tough to say I can go from this type district to this type district that are both in my town because some law says that, but, ‘oh, we’re not going to let you play sports.’” Tackett said. “So are we going to discourage them from doing that move that the legislature wants him to make because of athletics? Frankly, there’s people, right now, that are not making the move that they thought about making because of the athletics impact.”
No board members objected to the KHSAA staff drawing up a new transfer rule proposal. It could be debated at the board’s next scheduled meeting, May 10-11.
“This is more of a long term information campaign. Let’s be thinking about this. This is going to be a critical, future-shaping vote. And I’m talking about when it goes out having questions and answers right there with it,” Tackett said. “This is not something you’re going to spring on them in first of September and say, ‘By the way, we’re voting in two weeks.’”
In other action Wednesday, the board:
▪ Heard from Tackett that there will be no COVID-19 restrictions or mask requirements at the rest of the KHSAA’s winter championships, including the boys’ and girls’ Sweet 16 state basketball tournaments.
▪ Voted past president Darrell Billings as president-elect for 2022-2023. Billings, a Kentucky Department of Education appointed member from Clay City, served as board president in 2020-21.
