Protecting your Athletic Eligibility
General Eligibility Standards:
Enrollment:
Students must be officially registered and attending a public school. Students may represent only the school in which they are enrolled and attending, and at which, it is anticipated, they will complete their graduation requirements.
Residency:
Any student attending a Baltimore County Public Schools’ high school without the benefit of residing within the school’s attendance area and/or without the written authority of the superintendent’s designee or the pupil personnel worker, will be declared ineligible for participation in interscholastic athletics.
Transfers:
Students entering a Baltimore County Public Schools’ high school after September 30 and before November 15 shall be ineligible to represent the school in interscholastic athletic competition during the first semester unless such late entrance shall be by transfer from a school which the student has attended regularly during the current school year. Cases involving students who enter after November 15 will be decided by the principal and coordinator of the Office of Athletics. If a student transfers during a sport season, and the transfer is not the result of a parental change of address or court-ordered guardianship, the student is not eligible to participate in the same sport in which he/she participated at the previous school for the remainder of the sport season. (NOTE: Participation in a sport begins with the first day of team tryouts.)
Age:
Students who are 19 years old or older as of August 31 are ineligible to participate in the interscholastic program.
Scholastic Requirement:
Students are academically ineligible if they have less than a 2.0 grade point average with no more than one failing, incomplete, or medical grade in the preceding quarter. Fall academic eligibility is determined by the fourth quarter grading period from the preceding school year. This provision does not apply to incoming 9th grade students for initial fall eligibility.
Physical Examination/Athletic Permit Blank:
All students must be examined by a licensed physician, physician’s assistant under the supervision of a licensed certified physician, or certified nurse practitioner. The back of the form must be signed, dated and stamped by the physician, and the front completed and signed by the student’s parent or legal guardian. This physical is valid for one year from the date of the exam. The athletic permit blank must also be completed and signed by the student’s parent or legal guardian; including up-to-date insurance policy information. Both forms must be completed, certified, and provided to the high school principal prior to participating in any tryout, practice, or interscholastic competition.
Guidelines:
All Star Events:
By State rule 13A.06.03, individual student athletes may participate in TWO All-Star games upon the completion of their eligibility in the sport(s) in which this participation occurs.
Amateur Status:
Student athletes lose amateur status by using athletic skills as players for financial gain or by competing under an assumed name. Students shall also lose amateur status in a particular sport if they sign a professional contract in that sport. Students who have ceased to be amateurs in a particular sport may not represent a school in interscholastic athletics in that sport.
Awards:
In order to qualify for post-season awards, the student athlete must complete the season in good standing, remain academically eligible the entire season, and fulfill all team-related obligations. Each school develops its own policy for achievement and distribution of athletic awards.
Graduates:
You may not have graduated from high school in a previous semester.
Non-School Participation:
You may participate in the same sport during the same season as long as the participation does not conflict with your school team’s practice, games, or post–season tournaments.
Transportation:
All team members must travel in bonded carriers to and from all athletic events. If approved by the local school principal in advance, a team member may be released to the custody of a parent or legal guardian at the conclusion of an away contest. Approval must be in written form prior to the specified event and signed by the student athlete’s parent or legal guardian.
Student Athletes:
Your participation in athletics may help to make high school the most enjoyable time in your young life. The Maryland Public Secondary Schools Athletic Association and Baltimore County Public Schools want to ensure that you understand and meet all eligibility requirements for participation in interscholastic sports. The standards and policies highlighted in this brochure apply to all student athletes. Your athletic director or coach can provide you with further clarification and/or summary of these standards and guidelines.
Sportsmanship:
The development of productive citizens for society through demonstrated acts of sportsmanship shall be the top priority of interscholastic activities. Good sportsmanship is best described as commitment to fair play, ethical behavior, and integrity. Sportsmanship is characterized by generosity, genuine concern for others, and a view of the opponent as a competitor, not an adversary.
All athletes shall abide by a code of ethics which will earn them the honor and respect that participation and competition in interscholastic athletics affords.