Serving the High Plains
Serving the High Plains
The New Mexico Activities Association implemented what is being called a “two strikes, you’re out” sportsmanship policy after nearly 80% of its members voted for the bylaw change.
The new policy will be enacted during the 2023-2024 school year.
“We are glad to see our member schools approve this updated bylaw which coincides with our ‘Compete with Class’ initiative and hope this will help eliminate much of the growing bad behavior,” NMAA Executive Director Sally Marquez stated in a news release last week.
The updated bylaw specifies the possibility of suspension of a team or fan from athletic activities for unsportsmanlike conduct.
The bylaws include this language:
— Anytime an egregious act of unsportsmanlike conduct by a team participant, including a coach, occurs two or more times during the same season at the same school in the same activity, the team will be suspended from participation in that activity for the remainder of the season.
— Anytime an egregious act of unsportsmanlike conduct by a non-team participant occurs two or more times during the same season at the same school in the same activity, the non-team member, along with all school spectators, will be suspended from attendance in that activity for the remainder of the season.
— Unsportsmanlike conduct is defined in the NMAA Handbook as non-compliance with sport specific rules and NMAA policies, including behaviors incompatible with “Compete with Class” and the interscholastic educational objective.
Examples of egregious unsportsmanlike conduct by participants, coaches or spectators include but are not limited to: fans entering the playing surface to engage in acts of violence or abuse, constant verbal attacks on officials, attacking other fans, coaches physically or verbally attacking officials, players fighting other players during postgame handshakes or student sections verbally chanting inappropriate or demeaning comments towards individuals, teams or officials.
— If the second act of misconduct occurs when there are no games left in the season, the penalty may be applied to the next season in the same activity.
The NMAA will notify the school the team, individual or spectators have been placed on warning after the first offense.
The NMAA board of directors unanimously agreed last month to send the proposal to member schools for a final vote. Initial discussions over the bylaws change began about a year ago.
Tucumcari High School athletic director Wayne Ferguson said the proposal was prompted by “an accumulation of incidents.”
He said last month disagreed with the proposed policy, labeling it as “too punitive.”
NMAA Associate Director Dusty Young said last month the proposed policy change wasn’t prompted by one incident.
He stated in an email it was “just something that the NMAA and our member schools have been discussing for almost a year now in an effort to ensure that sportsmanship is a primary focus for our state moving forward.”
Similar sportsmanship measures have been approved by high school sports bodies in Oklahoma, Louisiana and Washington.