Recently, the Iowa Board of Education passed a new rule, Iowa Administrative Code 281-36.1, to allow eighth graders to participate in varsity athletics. This change in rule follows the passage of HF 2591 this past legislative session directing the state board to create policy on eighth grader participation. Governor Reynold signed the bill on June 2nd. The rule package still needs to work through the Administrative Rules Review Committee, but is effective as of June 18.
Since passage, the bill has caused some consternation among high school activities directors and coaches regarding how this new policy will be implemented because the legislation simply adds the following duties to the state Board of Education within Iowa Code 256.7: Adopt rules allowing students enrolled in grade eight to participate in any extracurricular interscholastic athletic contest or competition that is provided by a school district, nonpublic school, or charter school on the same basis as students who are enrolled in grades nine through twelve.
So what did the state board come up with regarding participation rules for eighth graders? The board punted, in some regards, the responsibility of policymaking on the subject to local school districts and their board of directors by adding the following to IAC 281-36.1: “Student” also includes students in eighth grade who are allowed to participate in an interscholastic athletic contest or competition pursuant to a local policy adopted by the board of directors of a school district, the authorities in charge of a nonpublic school, or the governing board of a charter school. An eighth grade student who participates pursuant to this policy shall not also participate in the same sports season for an eighth grade team.
While the state board did clarify that an eighth grader cannot participate in both middle and high school sports, it left the local districts to decide how an eighth grader might move up to participate in varsity sports. I think that’s the right move, because expectations, goals, and levels of student participation do vary between local districts across the state.
I have been asked, “So why does Iowa need to make such a change?” Well, an easy answer is that participation rates are down across the state in some sports, and down dramatically in some school districts. The National Federation of State High School Associations conducts an annual survey of high school athletic participation across states. The earliest data I find on their website is from the 2010-11 school year. The data is broken down by each sport for both boys and girls.
Girls basketball is often cited as the best example of dwindling participation. When compared to the most recent data from the 2024-25 school year, participation in girls basketball is down 32%. Of course, girls wrestling has increased from 47 girls in 2010-11 to 2,970 in 2024-25. Softball participation has the second greatest decline, down 19%. Anecdotally, girls’ participation seems to be more focused on volleyball, but the number of girls participating in that sport is down 8%.
In boys sports,14% fewer boys played football in 2024 than 2010. More boys are playing soccer in the fall, up 18%, which has pulled from football. Participation in baseball and basketball are also down 12% and 8%, while the number of boys wrestling is up slightly.
You might be thinking a good reason for lower participation is fewer high school students. However, that’s not correct. According to Iowa Department of Education statistics, there were actually 7,608 more high school-age students in 2024-25 than in 2010-11.
While I have tried to show an easy reason why schools need the option of eighth graders participating in high school sports, I think a more accurate reason is that collectively we are diminishing the value of participation. When looking at any one season, whether it’s fall, winter, spring, or summer, less than 20% of high school students participate in school-sponsored extra-curricular athletics. Sure, some are playing in club sports, but that number state-wide does not move the needle significantly. And certainly, there are non-athletic extra-curricular activities, but participation in those programs are down, too.
Zach Lahn, Republican candidate for governor, is making the argument in his campaign that we need to look at the culture of Iowa and what it is to be an Iowan. I believe that includes becoming more involved in our communities. A big part of community building is participating in extra-curricular activities while in the “safe space” of school.
In a recent episode of the Not Dead Yet podcast, host Ben Sasse, former U.S. senator, talks with Jack and John Harbaugh about their experiences as football players and coaches. John Harbaugh won the Super Bowl as coach of the Baltimore Ravens. His dad, Jack, coached at many colleges during his career, including at the University of Iowa. The conversation wasn’t focused about the winning and losing, but about what you learn about leadership, cooperation, and working toward a common goal when being part of a team. More kids need that experience, not fewer.
We have had informal conversations at the Capitol about drafting legislation that would require participation in some extra-curricular activity prior to graduation. While I don’t think policy like that would ever be likely to pass, I do believe kids need to get more involved.
To build the culture of Iowa, I believe we all need to do more to demonstrate community involvement and parents need to do more to encourage, and maybe even demand, that their kids get more involved and learn what it means to be part of a team, whether that’s in athletics, the arts, sciences, or community groups like 4-H and scouting.
