By Dana Hess
For the S.D. NewsMedia Association
PIERRE—The South Dakota High School Activities Association board of directors is working toward figuring out the classifications and alignments for the 2024-25 and 2025-26 school years. At its meeting Wednesday, six schools appealed their membership numbers. Membership numbers determine a school’s classification for sports and activities.
An appeal from Sisseton was approved. Superintendent Tammy Meyer said 10 male students have lost their eligibility to play football and should be deducted from the school’s average daily membership of male students.
“This is a waiver that we have granted in the past,” said SDHSAA Executive Director Dan Swartos.
Another waiver traditionally granted by the board came from the Hamlin School
District which has a large contingent of Apostolic Lutheran students who are not allowed to participate in sports and activities.
Hamlin’s waiver was granted on a 6-2 vote. Board chairman Kelly Messmer of Harding County explained that he was one of the no votes. “I feel we all have athletes that will never play,” Messmer said. “We have to count them. It’s tough to draw the line for me.”
A similar request from Lake Preston to adjust its numbers because of students from the Apostolic Lutheran religion was approved on a 7-1 vote.
A request to delete four students who had lost their eligibility was approved for Flandreau.
Ipswich Activities Director Daniel Knust asked that four students who are “mentally and physically” unable to participate in sports be stricken from the school’s membership numbers.
Swartos cautioned the board against granting the request on the advice of the association’s lawyer.
“It gets into some really treacherous waters of which disabilities you count and which you don’t count,” Swartos said. The request was denied when there was no motion to grant the change.
A request from Plankinton to not count the students at the Aurora Plains Academy was held over for a later meeting. Swartos explained that students at the academy are placed there through the court system and usually aren’t there long enough to participate in sports.
Swartos said he wanted to check with other districts that have alternative schools to see how they classify those students when it comes to eligibility for sports and activities.
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