Athletic Code of Conduct
CODE OF CONDUCT FOR JASPER MIDDLE SCHOOL
STUDENT ATHLETES
Revised May 2, 2013
RULES FOR STUDENT ATHLETES
The Rules of the Indiana High School Athletic Association contain the following provision applicable to all Indiana High School Athletes:
Rule C-8-1: “Contestants’ conduct, in and out of school, shall be such as:
a. Not to reflect discredit upon their school or the Association.
b. Not to create a disruptive influence on the discipline, good order, moral or educational environment of the School."
Participation in any athletic program at Jasper Middle School is not a right, but is a privilege to be earned and maintained. Any student may, for proper cause, be excluded by the school administration from participating in school athletic events.
Each student who elects to participate as an athlete in any Jasper Middle School athletic program agrees to and shall abide by the above IHSAA Rule C-8-1, which forms the foundation of the Code of Conduct for Jasper Middle School student athletes, and by the following rules and other rules which may be from time to time established by their individual coach(s):
1. The school athletic career begins for all student athletes on the first day of school of their 6th grade year, the first day of sanctioned practice their 6th grade year, or on the day of the Jasper Middle School sponsored physicals, whichever comes first, and continues for the entire four (3) years or as long as a student athlete is a member of an athletic team.
2. Jasper Middle School exists to educate the students of the Greater Jasper School District. For this purpose, certain academic standards and rules of conduct, as outlined in the Jasper Middle School Student Handbook, have been established and are applicable to all students. These would include, but not be limited to, grades, class attendance, behavior at school and school functions, and overall compliance with such standards and rules. Violation of such student academic standards and rules, if an offense resulting in school or out of school suspension will be a violation of this Athletic Code of Conduct.
3. Any conduct by a student athlete, which violates or is in conflict with IHSAA Rule C-8-1a, as set forth above, shall be a violation of this Code of Conduct.
4. Each coach may establish team rules, which are applicable only to his or her team. Violation of team rules, based upon the severity or frequency of such violation by an athlete, may constitute a violation of this Code of Conduct, or may be treated as an intra-team violation with penalties not exceeding those set forth below. To implement the next level of the Offense structure, notice must be given to the Athletic Director.
Violation of the above Code of Conduct shall result in the imposition of a penalty. While normally such penalty will be based upon a progressive schedule, cumulating the number of prior violations (Offenses) during the student’s enrollment, it should be noted that the progressive schedule represents the minimum penalty to be administered. In the event of more extreme or severe violations, the progressive schedule may be ignored and a more severe penalty may be imposed, up to a total ban from participation for a single severe violation.
Under normal circumstances, the following penalty (ies) will be imposed for violations of the Code of Conduct”
FIRST OFFENSE
The student athlete shall be suspended for a minimum of 30% of the scheduled contests for that sport. If the suspension falls near enough to the end of a sport season that the full penalty of 30% of contests cannot be assessed, the penalty shall carry over to post season tournaments, then to the next sport in which the athlete participates.
SECOND OFFENSE
The student athlete shall be suspended for a minimum of an additional 50% of the scheduled contests for that sport. If the suspension falls near enough to the end of a season that the full penalty of 50% of the contests cannot be assessed, the penalty shall carry over to post season tournaments, then to the next sport season in which the athlete participates. In addition to the 50% suspension the Athletic Council may further require that before the student athlete may subsequently participate in any athletic program, that athlete must complete Council approved counseling, at the student’s expense.
Computation of the number of suspended contests for the First or Second Offenses shall be based upon the total number scheduled in that particular sport, with fractional numbers being rounded up and down (i.e. 1.4 = 1; 1.5 = 2). A chart of total allowed games for each sport shall be maintained by the Athletic Office, and a current copy is attached.
A penalty carry-over to the next sport in which the athlete participates will only apply towards the suspension if, after completion of the penalty, the athlete continues to participate in the carry-over sport through the remainder of the sport’s season.
THIRD OFFENSE
A student athlete found guilty of a third offense will be banned from competing in any sport for one calendar year (365 days) from the date of the third offense.
FOURTH OFFENSE
A student athlete found guilty of a fourth offense will be banned from school competitions in athletics during his/her enrollment at Jasper Middle School.
Should it be requested by a coach that a more substantial penalty be imposed, due to a severe violation, the Athletic Council will meet to consider the facts surrounding the violation and the effects on the school and athletic program, and that Council will decide as to whether the penalty to be imposed should be in excess of the penalty indicated in the above offense scale.
It should be noted that if an athlete is participating at two different levels of sports during the same time period (i.e. JV-Varsity), the suspension will continue until the correct number of contests are met on the higher (Varsity) level; or if the athlete is participating in two different sports at the same time, the suspension will be simultaneously applicable to each such sport at the designated percentage level; and that no athlete may practice or participate in any school sports program while suspended from school for discipline reasons. During a period of school suspension, the suspended athlete may not participate in any sport activity or practice, but shall be required to follow all conduct rules established by the coach of the suspended sport. IHSAA rules prohibit a suspended student from participating in sports at any other school during the suspension period.
In the event that any student or his/her parents should dispute the facts upon which a penalty is imposed, a written appeal, setting forth the disputed facts, may be submitted to the Principal of Jasper Middle School, who will conduct a meeting of the Athletic Council to consider the appeal. Based upon the contents of the written appeal, the Council may, but is not required to, request the student or parents to attend a Council meeting prior to making a determination concerning the violation. The presumption shall be that prior violation and penalty violation are correct and the burden shall be on the appellant(s) to show to the contrary.
The Middle School Athletic Council, as referred to above, shall consist of the Middle School Principal, Asst. Principal, Athletic Director, and coach of the subject sport.
Athletic Code Substance Abuse Clause
5. At no time is a student athlete allowed to use or be in possession of any form of alcoholic beverage, tobacco, or illegal substance or drug. Failure to produce a negative random drug test would constitute a violation of this cause.
“Possession” is defined as having such alcoholic beverage or illegal drugs in a vehicle in which the student is driving or is a passenger, or being convicted in a court of law of the charge of illegal possession of alcohol and drugs. The School Corporation has the legal right to randomly test for use of drugs, alcohol or tobacco by any student participating in sports or any other extra-curricular programs.”
Consequences for Violation of Rule #5
FIRST VIOLATION:
The student athlete shall be suspended for a minimum of 50% of the scheduled contests for that sport. If the suspension falls near enough to the end of a sport season that the full penalty of 50% of contests cannot be assessed, the penalty shall carry over to any post season tournament, then to the next sport in which the athlete participates.
The Athletic Council will further require that before the student athlete may subsequently participate in any athletic program, that athlete must complete Council approved counseling at the student’s expense and complete 8 hours of community service at the discretion of the Athletic Council. Should the counseling and community service be completed, the suspension will be reduced from 50% to 30% (See the chart below clarification.) Said student will also be placed on automatic testing each time a random test series is given for the remainder of the school year at the student’s expense.
Community Service shall be defined as the following:
Supervised work that is helpful to Jasper Middle School and/or the Community in general, including, but not limited to special custodial work, special projects, speaking engagements to student/civic groups, supervised work at community entities, and other work cleared by the building principal and/or athletic director.
A student may resume practice with his/her athletic team only at the discretion of the individual coach.
SECOND VIOLATION
The student athlete shall be suspended from athletic competition for one calendar year from the date of the Athletic Council action. A student may try out for a team or participate in any team activities until that calendar year has been completed. Said student will also be placed on automatic testing each time a random test series is given for the remainder of the school year at the student’s expense.
THIRD VIOLATION
The student athlete shall have competition privileges revoked for the remainder of the student’s school career.
**There is no grandfather clause related to the punishment scale. If a student has already earned one violation and commits a second infraction, he/she will be placed on the newly adopted scale for a second penalty.
ATTENDANCE
Students are expected to be in school all day on the day of a contest. Students who are absent from school are not allowed to attend practice or contests on that same day. On the day following a contest, students are to be present when school begins. Any student not present for the beginning of school, on the day after a contest, is not to participate in practice. Students who are absent with just cause may participate with permission of the athletic director, principal, or assistant principal.
ACADEMIC ELIGIBILITY
Eligibility will be determined when report cards are issued. Any student who receives a “U” or an “F” in a subject or citizenship on his/her quarterly report will have his/her eligibility subjected to an administrative review. Any student who receives a “U” or an “F” in a subject or citizenship on his/her final (spring) nine-week report (not semester report) at the end of his/her 6th or 7th grade year, will also have his/her eligibility reviewed for the first nine-week grading period of his/her 7th or 8th grade year.
The above will likewise apply to any student new to Jasper Middle School. A new student’s transcript will be evaluated before eligibility will be granted. Students in the 8th grade that were retained in the 7th or 8th grade are not allowed to participate in conference games. JMS students will abide by the age requirements as set by the Southern Indiana Junior High Athletic Conference.
COMMITMENT TO JASPER MIDDLE SCHOOL
1. Students shall not participate on any other organized team during the school team season of that same sport.
2. When students are participating in two different activities, both school sponsored, the student and coaches/sponsors will work out an acceptable schedule. If an agreement cannot be reached, the student will have to make a choice between the conflicting activities.
3. When students are participating in two different activities, one school sponsored and one not, the student will give priority to the school activity.