Department of Education passes socioeconomic factor for football classification

DES MOINES -- The Iowa Department of Education unanimously voted Thursday to approve the football classification amendment submitted by the Iowa High School Athletic Association.

The proposed amendment adds a socioeconomic factor to football classifications starting in 2023-24, implementing a formula for free and reduced lunch percentages and school enrollments to determine new final classification numbers.

“We appreciate the Board of Education’s diligence and careful consideration of the proposal our membership has asked us to implement,” IHSAA executive director Tom Keating said in a release. “This classification model is an important first step in addressing competitive equity in the sport of football.”

The classification adjustment will reduce 40 percent of a school’s free- or reduced-lunch count from their annual enrollment to determine their final classification number.

The IHSAA approved the model, currently used in Minnesota, on Dec. 6.

Seventeen days later, member schools overwhelmingly passed the amendment, sending it to the Board of Education.

The IHSAA will move forward with an updated football redistricting process this offseason. This will include releasing updated BEDS numbers (enrollments for grades 9-11) and compiling available FRL percentages from the Department of Education once available, developing new district and group assignments, then new schedules for the two-year cycle.

Comments: jeff.linder@thegazette.com