05-05-2025
IHSAA first-time transfer rule adopted; girls' flag football passed as emerging sport
As expected, the Indiana High School Athletic Association board of directors formally adopted a first-time transfer proposal at its annual meeting on Monday afternoon.
The new rule, which was pushed by state legislators to align with the school choice model for all students and will allow a transfer regardless of the athletic motivation, will go into effect June 1. In short:
*Students whose first transfer is from IHSAA school to IHSAA school will maintain full eligibility if it occurs during their first six semesters of high school.
*Second and subsequent transfers and transfers from non-IHSAA schools will be handled in a similar fashion to the way they have been in previous years.
*Students whose second transfer involves a return to the IHSAA school where they established their initial promotion eligibility will retain full eligibility within 365 days of their enrollment date at the previous school.
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The IHSAA adopted the basic framework for the first-time transfer rule in February.
Girls flag football added as emerging sport
In other major news from the board of directors meeting, girls' flag football was added as an emerging sport by a vote of 17-1. It will join girls' lacrosse, which was approved last August, as an emerging sport for the 2025-26 school year.
Becoming an emerging sport puts those sports on track to become officially recognized as girls' wrestling and boys' volleyball did this year. For a sport to become officially recognized and an IHSAA state tournament be sponsored, 50% of the membership must be participating in the sport.
Girls' flag football has significant backing from the NFL. The Colts have made a $1 million investment locally in girls' flag football.
Other proposals
A proposal to have cooperative programs between smaller schools was voted down by a vote of 12-6. The co-op proposal would have allowed two member schools to cooperatively sponsor interscholastic activities if one school had fewer than 300 students and the partner school had fewer than 750 students.
A proposal to classify tennis as a team sport was tabled for further discussion at a later date. A proposal to change the language on undue influence to read as a transfer student having 'worked directly with a coach, manager, trainer, volunteer or employee' at the receiving school at the time of the transfer was tabled to the June meeting.
Overall, 11 of the proposals were approved, three failed to receive enough support and two were tabled for further discussion.
