The Illinois High School Association (IHSA) confirmed on January 27 that seven member schools will be suspended immediately from State Series participation in all IHSA activities and sports due to non-compliance with By-law 2.130. By-law 2.130 states “each member school principal or his/her designee shall be in attendance at an annual principal rules meeting/town meeting.”

Schools who fail to attend an annual town hall/principal rules meeting are placed on probation and then are suspended if they fail to attend for two consecutive years.

The following schools failed to attend for two consecutive years and were suspended: Chicago (Orr), Chicago (Academy of Scholastic Achievement), Chicago (Best Practice), Chicago (Henry Ford Power House Charter), Chicago (Las Casas), Plainfield (Christ Lutheran Academy), Rockford (Our Lady of the Sacred Heart).

The IHSA annually holds town hall/principal rules meetings at 28 different high schools geographically placed throughout the state during November. All schools who failed to attend the November meetings were invited to a pair of make-up meetings that were held at the IHSA office in January.

“It is always disappointing when students are punished for the failure of adults to take care of responsibilities,” said IHSA Executive Director Marty Hickman. “We value the time of the administrators at all of our member schools and want them to be in their buildings as much as possible. Thus, we wouldn’t conduct these meetings if we didn’t believe they were vital to educating our schools on recent and forthcoming rule changes, many of which directly impact how they maintain their compliance within the IHSA."