7410 - Eligibility for Co Curricular & Extracurricular Activities

Policy: Eligibility for Co Curricular & Extracurricular Activities	Policy Number: 7410
Date of Original Policy: 07/10/2002	Date Revision Adopted: 11/03/2021
Reviewed by Policy Committee: 10/17/2021	Date of Next Review: 10/21/2024
Replacement of Policy Number:

The Board of Education has the authority to establish reasonable standards as prerequisites for eligibility for cocurricular and extracurricular activities.  These standards apply to entry qualifications as well as to continued participation in such activities.  Advisors/Coaches must disseminate a copy of the expected standards of conduct to all students and parents at the start of each school year, and participating students should be individually informed of the application and scope of such standards.

Eligibility and continued participation in cocurricular and extracurricular activities are a privilege extended to students, as opposed to a right, and the behavioral standards sets forth in the district Code of Conduct (policy 5300) apply to all students participating in any cocurricular and/or extracurricular activity.  All student participants, including athletes, will be informed that they have the obligation to act in a responsible manner because of the leadership roles they play in the school environment and as a result are expected to adhere to a ban on the consumption/use of alcoholic beverages, drugs (other than those appropriately prescribed), and/or tobacco products on or off campus.

Advisors/Coaches must specify minimum school attendance requirements, and the minimum grade point average (GPA) they expect student participants to maintain. All such standards must be reasonable. The relationship between a student's GPA and his/her eligibility must be clearly explained to all student participants.

"Training rules" are generally accepted as a condition of participation in student athletics, and may include attendance at practices, individual training programs, etc. Similar rules of rehearsal attendance and practice may apply to other extracurricular or cocurricular activities such as orchestra, band and theater.  

Advisors/Coaches will provide these expectations in writing at the beginning of the school year or season, as appropriate.

Although suspension from participation in an extracurricular activity does not require a full hearing pursuant to Section 3214 of the Education Law, a student must be given the opportunity to appear informally before the disciplinarian and/or disciplinary committee, and present his/her side of the story as part of a general discussion of the conduct under review.

Education Law §§1709(3); 2801
Bush v. Dassel-Cokato Board of Ed., 745 F. Supp. 562 (D. Minn. 1990)
Matter of O'Conner v. Bd. of Ed., 65 Misc.2d 40 (1970)
Matter of Wilson, 28 EDR 254 (1988)
Matter of Keily, 24 EDR 138 (1984)
Matter of Miller, 23 EDR 23 (1983)
Matter of Moore, 22 EDR 180 (1982)
Matter of Clark, 21 EDR 542 (1982)
Matter of Vetter, 20 EDR 547 (1981)