Clarke board approves petition to include 6th graders in sports

Clarke School Board Dec. 9 approved supporting a petition to include sixth-grade students in junior high sports. The board was informed of the proposal from Seymour High School Athletic Director Bryson Dinwiddle.

Including sixth-grade students potentially adds more students to teams as smaller schools face enrollment declines and challenges fielding teams. The proposal does not include football.

“I am a teacher, coach, and Athletic Director at Seymour High School in southern Iowa. Over the past year, along with my colleagues in the Bluegrass Conference, we have been discussing the possibility of allowing 6th graders to participate in Junior High sports, beginning in the fall of their 6th grade year, and what that would like in terms of numbers for teams.

As rural schools continue to face declining enrollment, our athletic programs are also shrinking. In the past two years alone at Seymour, we’ve experienced shortened seasons due to a lack of players, as well as games and seasons where we couldn’t field a full team. Many schools are forced to cancel games, share players with other schools, or even forgo entire seasons, all of which negatively impact our students’ opportunities to participate in sports.

In response to this issue, I reached out to the Iowa High School Athletic Association (IAHSAA) and the Iowa Girls High School Athletic Union (IGHSAU) to inquire about the steps needed to allow 6th graders to play Junior High sports. Tom Keating, the Executive Director of IAHSAA, informed me that such a change would require an amendment to the Articles of Incorporation.

The first step in this process is gathering a petition with signatures from 100 member schools in support of this proposal. Our conference is proposing that 6th graders be eligible for Junior High sports participation, with the exception of football, due to safety concerns, at the beginning of their 6th grade year. We would also like to see individual schools retain the authority to decide whether to allow their own 6th graders to participate.

After consulting with various Athletic Directors and coaches, we believe this change would benefit small schools by helping them field complete teams and avoid season cancellations. I have talked with Brad Bush, Assistant Director, of the Michigan High School Athletic Association, along with the Missouri High School Athletic Association and this model closely follows what they have both implemented a few years ago and have seen the majority of schools decide to allow 6th graders to participate.

By signing this petition, you are not committing your school to this change but rather supporting the opportunity for smaller schools and teams to sustain their programs and provide full seasons for their student athletes. I encourage you to discuss this proposal within your schools and conferences and consider the potential positive impact it could have on our schools and communities.”