Cross Country Manual Pre-Season Regulations

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Pre-Season Regulations

Employment of Coaches

Section 1202

(a) HIGH SCHOOL COACHES.

(1) Full-Time Employees. A school is not eligible for UIL competition in an athletic activity unless the head coach and assistant high school coaches are full-time employees of the school board of the school which the team represents.

(2) Full-Time Defined. Full-time means that the person is under contract to the school board of the school which the athletic team represents for the whole scholastic or calendar year, and the person has enough contractual duties to be considered a full-time employee by the Teacher Retirement System and state law. Refer to Official Interpretation 05-08-03, Appendix I.

(3) Exceptions. A retired teacher/administrator who has 20 or more years of experience may serve as an assistant coach in all athletics and as a head coach for golf, tennis, team tennis, cross-country, track and field, swimming and wrestling. (This rule shall not affect the status of a coach on a leave of absence attending college.) Also, student teachers, while they are assigned to a member school district to fulfill their student teaching requirements, may volunteer to serve as an assistant coach in all athletics. Schools shall not pay student teachers for assisting athletic coaches. A full-time substitute who has coached during the school year may be permitted to continue coaching until the UIL competitive year has ended. Example: state baseball playoffs.

Texas Education Code Requirements (State Law)

TEC Chapter 33.086 - Certification - CPR and First Aid Training

Athletic coaches, athletic trainers, cheerleading sponsors and other head directors of UIL extra-curricular activities must have a current certification filed with the district.

TEC Chapter 22.902 - Certification - AED Training

Athletic coaches and sponsors, school nurses, PE teachers, marching band directors, and students that serve as an athletic trainer must have a current certification filed with the district.

TEC Chapter 33.202 - Annual Requirement – Safety Training

Training provided by UIL within the Rules Compliance Program (RCP). Athletic coaches must complete prior to contact with students.

TEC Chapter 38.158 - Annual Requirement - Concussion Training (2 hours every other year/1 hour annually)

Athletic coaches, athletic trainers and potential members of the Concussion Oversight Team must complete the training annually.

Coaches Certification Program (CCP)

The CCP consists of both UIL and state law requirements and requires a coach to complete the prescribed components on a yearly basis. Completion of the CCP will recognize coaches as UIL certified coaches. All coaches shall annually complete the UIL Coaches Certification Program prescribed by the UIL prior to their sport season or prior to the first day of school if their sport is not in season. A coach who is hired less than one week prior to the start of the sport season or after the first day of school (whichever is earlier) must complete the CCP within thirty (30) days of being hired.

Required CCP Modules:

1. Constitution & Contest Rules

2. Ethics & Sportsmanship

3. UIL Steroid Education

4. Safety Training (state law)

5. Concussion Training (state law)

6. Sport Specific Training – each sport has a sport specific CCP module

7. Football coaches only – Best Practices in Tackling (Atavus) certification that will be required for all first-year football coaches or those coaches who have not completed both 1.0 and 2.0.

8. First Year Coaches Only - Fundamentals of Coaching in Texas – required for first year coaches (or JH volunteers) or coaches in their first year to coach in the state of Texas.

9. Cheerleading Coach/Sponsor only - Safety/Risk Minimization for Cheerleading Course

     A. Must have a current certification or annual training completed prior to contact with participants.

     B. Districts shall determine the organization that will provide the certification or training. Resources are available but not limited to those on the UIL web site.

UIL Eligibility for Athletic Contests

Subchapter M - Sections 400 & 403-412

Student Participation Required Forms

It shall be the responsibility of each school to keep on file the following required annual forms for each student who participates in any practice, scrimmage, or game. REQUIRED FORMS

Forms for all students:

Pre-Participation Physical Examination Form. As a minimum requirement, a Physical Examination Form must be completed prior to junior high athletic participation and again prior to first and third years of high school athletic participation. Local district policy may require an annual physical exam. The form must be filled in and signed by either a Physician, a Physician Assistant licensed by a State Board of Physician Assistant Examiners, a Registered Nurse recognized as an Advanced Practice Nurse by the Board of Nurse Examiners, or a Doctor of Chiropractic. Examination forms signed by any other health care practitioner, will not be accepted.

Medical History Form. Each year prior to any practice or participation a UIL Medical History Form signed by both a student and a parent or guardian is required. A Medical History Form shall accompany each physical examination and shall be signed by both a student and a parent or guardian.

Parent or Guardian Permit. Annual participation permit signed by the student’s parent or guardian.

Rules Acknowledgment Form. Annual UIL Rules Acknowledgment Form signed by the student and the student’s parent or guardian.

Parent/Student Anabolic Steroid Use and Random Steroid Testing Form. The parent/guardian of each high school athlete, along with each high school athlete, must annually sign the UIL Illegal Steroid Use and Random Steroid Testing Parent and Student Notification/Agreement Form.

Concussion Acknowledgement Form. Annual UIL Concussion Acknowledgment Form signed by the student and the student’s parent or guardian.

Sudden Cardiac Arrest Awareness Form. Annual UIL Sudden Cardiac Arrest Awareness Form signed by the student and the student's parent or guardian.

Forms for Varsity Participation

Eligibility Form. Schools must submit comprehensive eligibility blanks for football, basketball, volleyball, softball, baseball, and soccer.  For all other athletic activities general alphabetical listing of eligible athletes is required.  One copy shall be sent to the district executive committee chair and one copy shall be filed in the school’s office.  Completed eligibility forms are to be signed by the superintendent or a designated administrator and the coach.  These forms are to be postmarked before a contestant is allowed to participate in a varsity contest.  Failure to furnish correct and complete information may, upon request by the proper committee, constitute grounds for suspension.

Previous Athletic Participation Form. New students in grades 9-12 who represented their former school in a varsity or sub-varsity athletic contest or practice in grades 8-12 in any previous school year must have a Previous Athletic Participation Form completed prior to participation in a varsity contest at the new school.

Late Forms. If an eligibility form or a Previous Athletic Participation Form was not filed prior to competition, and it was an inadvertent error and the student is actually eligible under Subchapter M of the Constitution, the district executive committee is not required to demand forfeiture or to rule the student ineligible.  They may assess the minimum penalty of private reprimand to the school.

Foreign Exchange Students. Subject to the other eligibility rules of the Constitution, foreign exchange students in approved CSIET foreign exchange programs are allowed to apply for exceptions to the residence rule through the UIL waiver process. A waiver could be granted in certain activities if they have not received advanced training or have not had extensive experience in the activity of their choice.  Foreign exchange students are not eligible for varsity athletic participation unless they are granted a Foreign Exchange Student Waiver.

Varsity Athletic Eligibility for Over-Age Student. Subject to the other eligibility rules of the UIL Constitution, an individual is eligible to participate in a League varsity athletic contest as a representative of a participant school if that individual is less than 19 years old on September 1 preceding the contest; or has been granted eligibility based on a handicapping condition which delayed his or her education by at least one year and the student is currently in special education and under the auspices of an ARD Committee or has been identified as a 504 student prior to the end of their second year in high school (effective for entering ninth graders in the current school year).