An Analysis of the Performance, Governance, and Authority of the Virginia High School League, Inc.

• Main Author: Jefferies, Scott Lewis
• Other Authors: Educational Leadership and Policy Studies
• Format: Others
• Published: Virginia Tech 2017
• Subjects: VHSL; appeals; interscholastic athletics; high school athletic associations
• Online Access: http://hdl.handle.net/10919/77037

The Virginia High School League is a private, non-profit organization whose member schools include public high schools and one private school in the Commonwealth of Virginia (Virginia High School League Organization, 2015). This organization manages and supervises athletics and other extracurricular activities such as forensics, debate, drama and publications (Polakiewicz, 1985). The mission statement of the Virginia High School League is "The Virginia High School League is an alliance of Virginia's public and approved non-boarding, non-public high schools that promotes education, leadership, sportsmanship, character and citizenship for students by establishing and maintaining high standards for school activities and competitions" (Virginia High School League Handbook, 2016, p. 13). Since each state is responsible for establishing a system of supervision and oversight for regulating interscholastic athletics and activities, differences in the administrative structures among each state's athletic associations are inevitable. This dissertation contains court cases regarding interscholastic athletics, and their impact on state athletic associations. Current issues facing not only the Virginia High School League, but all state athletic associations are also examined in this dissertation. The survey results suggest that participants support the VHSL's authority to impose probation which would prohibit the participation of coaches and sponsors, member schools, and participants. Additionally, the survey results suggest that the majority of participants believe the VHSL is performing well and that home-schooled students should not be able to participate in VHSL athletics and activities. Moreover, survey participants identify the major issues they believe the VHSL will face in the next five to ten years, while also identifying organizational changes that the VHSL should make. === Ed. D.