The TSSAA Legislative Council met via a virtual meeting on Wednesday, July 13th to take action on three proposed changes to the bylaws. The first change was in regards to the Middle School (TMSAA) bylaws, with the other two changes affecting Unified Sports in the TSSAA bylaws.
The TMSAA change was in regards to officials. Article IV, Section 16 of the TMSAA bylaws now states:
"For varsity contests, all officials must be registered and approved by TSSAA."
The definition of a Unified Partner in regards to Unified Sports was changed to state:
"Unified Partner - A student participating in Unified Sports who has no intellectual disability or cognitive delay. Unified Partners are paired with Unified Athletes to participate on Unified Sports teams. Unified Partners are not eligible to participate in the TSSAA postseason at the state level on the school team for the sanctioned sport in which they are participating in the Unified competition."
The final item the Council approved was a change to Article II, Section 26 (Athletes Participating in Unified Sports) of the TSSAA Bylaws. The bylaw now reads as follows:
"Unified Partners must meet all TSSAA eligibility requirements. They are not eligible to participate in the TSSAA postseason at the state level on the school team for the sanctioned sport in which they are participating in the Unified competition."
The full minutes from the meeting can be found by clicking on the link below.