Athletics

 ATHLETICS
Middle school athletics are governed by policies from the North Carolina Department of Instruction (NCDPI), the Davidson County
Middle School Conference (DCMSC) and the Davidson County Schools Board of Education.

ELIGIBILITY
A student upon entering the sixth (6th) grade begins his/her process for obtaining eligibility to compete on seventh (7th) grade athletic
teams. [For South Davidson a student upon entering the fifth (5th) grade begins his/her process for obtaining eligibility to compete on 
6th grade athletic teams-except football.] This is a conference regulation which mandates a higher eligibility standard than reflected in state guidelines.

A student shall not participate on a seventh (7th) or eighth (8th) grade team if the student becomes 15 years of age on or before August 31 of that year.

A student who is not academically eligible at the beginning of a semester period is not eligible at any time during that semester. (Exception: A student who receives an “incomplete” in a course which causes him/her not to meet minimum scholastic requirements is ineligible until the course is satisfactorily made up and eligibility is restored.)

No student may be eligible to participate at the middle school level for more than four (4) consecutive semesters beginning with the
student’s entry into seventh (7th) grade.

Davidson County Schools Board of Education Policy 6.5 requires a student (1) to receive a final grade of 60 or higher in Language Arts
AND Mathematics courses and (2) to receive a final grade of 60 in social studies OR science courses (to pass 3 of 4 courses) in which
he/she was enrolled during the previous semester in order to be eligible for participation for athletics during the current semester. At the
end of the academic year, students must meet promotion standards to be eligible for participation in athletics for the fall semester of the
next school year. It is important to note that administrative promotion (promotion to the next grade regardless of meeting standards) is not the same as meeting promotion standards (outlined above).  This is a district regulation which mandates a higher standard than reflected in state guidelines.

STUDENT CONDUCT
If a team member not participating in the game comes onto the playing surface during an event or immediately thereafter to engage in
conflict, that team shall be placed on probation and may not participate until a decision is rendered by the conference.
 

ATTENDANCE
A student must have no more than 8 absences in the semester prior to the season in order to be eligible. Fall eligibility is based on the 3rd and 4th quarters from the previous spring, and spring eligibility is based on 1st and 2nd quarters from the current academic year.. If absences have been formally waived by the principal, these shall not count toward the total number of absences for eligibility purposes.

HEALTH PHYSICALS
A student must have a current health physical within the last 395 days to be eligible for participation.

Documents are also attached to this page regarding Athletic Eligibility.