Sports governing organization
The North Carolina High School Athletic Association (NCHSAA) is the governing organization of high school athletics in North Carolina, United States. The association maintains the official rule books and governs the officiating standards across the state.[1]
The NCHSAA organizes member schools into conferences and oversees the state championships for each of the sanctioned sports. The NCHSAA headquarters is located at 222 Finley Golf Course Road, in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. The mailing address for the NCHSAA is PO Box 3216, Chapel Hill, North Carolina 27515.
History
The NCHSAA was founded in 1913 by Dr. Louis Round Wilson, a professor at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. The university served as the primary source of funding and leadership for the Association from 1913 through 1947, before the organization adopted its current model, which provides school administrators with direct influence through the presence of the NCHSAA Board of Directors. The NCHSAA remained affiliated with UNC-Chapel Hill until 2010, when it became an independent organization.[2]
The first state championships were held in the NCHSAA's inaugural year of 1913, in both football and track. Baseball (1914), basketball (1915), and tennis (1916) were added over the next three athletic seasons. The NCHSAA would continue to sanction a variety of different sports throughout its history, including soccer (1927), wrestling (1931), golf (1937), swimming (1950), cross country (1956), softball (1975), volleyball (1976), indoor track (1987), and lacrosse (2010). Women's sports were first sanctioned in 1968, with women's golf being the first sport having an NCHSAA championship.[3]
Classifications
High schools within the state were first organized into classifications in 1929, based by the size of the student population. Prior to 1929, all schools played in a single "open" format and postseason play was decided within "east" and "west" regions by meetings of school administrators. The east versus west postseason approach continues to this day. In 1929, the NCHSAA first split schools into "Class A" and "Class B", with Class A consisting of schools with a larger student population.
In December 1929, in the Piedmont and Western Foothills region of the state, 16 charter member high schools formed the Western North Carolina High School Activities Association (WNCHSAA). This association grew to as many as 42 high schools and four different conferences. The WNCHSAA schools merged into the NCHSAA in 1977.[4]
The NCHSAA, due to segregation, also did not include African American high schools. These historically black high schools competed in the North Carolina High School Athletics Conference (NCHSAC) and would start to merge into the NCHSAA in 1967.[5]
Several other changes occurred to NCHSAA classifications between 1929 and 1958, which eventually went to three classifications. In 1959, due to growth and consolidation of North Carolina high schools, member schools were split into four classifications, identified by 1A, 2A, 3A, & 4A. The states 4A class is made up of the largest high schools, and 1A the smallest. These four classes have remained as the different classification sizes of North Carolina high schools to the current day.
Prior to 1993, a set minimum enrollment number delineated each school's classification. In 1993, schools were split so that approximately 25% of the schools were in each of the four classifications. A new approach was instituted in 2017, known as the 20-30-30-20 model, with the largest 20% in 4A and the smallest 20% in 1A. The middle 60% was split between 2A and 3A. This model received considerable criticism for the unbalanced classes, and the NCHSAA moved back to the 25-25-25-25 model in 2021. The classifications and conferences of each school are assessed every four years based on updated student population numbers.
All NCHSAA sanctioned sports have a separate state championship competition and title for each of the 1A, 2A, 3A and 4A classifications. The only exceptions are sports in which the 1A and 2A classifications are combined (in some instances 1A, 2A, and 3A are combined). In football, starting in 2002, each classification was separated into a single "A" and double "AA" classification, with the double "AA" classification being made up of larger schools than the single "A". Classes were 1A, 1AA, 2A, 2AA, 3A, 3AA, 4A and 4AA for football only. This single "A" and double "AA" format lasted until the fall of 2021, when the NCHSAA went back to football being only 1A, 2A, 3A, and 4A class sizes.[6]
Starting in the 2025–26 school year, the classifications will expand from 4 to 8.[7]
There are a number of different high school conferences throughout the state for local play. Many conferences are grouped with high schools all being in the same classification, with some conferences consisting of schools from two different classifications.
Sports
The NCHSAA sanctions the following sports: Baseball, Basketball, Cross Country, Football, Golf, Track and Field, Lacrosse, Soccer, Softball, Swimming, Tennis, Cheerleading, Volleyball, and Wrestling.
Many North Carolina schools, particularly in larger metropolitan areas, have programs in field hockey, girls and boys beach volleyball, and gymnastics, but these sports are currently not sanctioned by the NCHSAA.
Awards
Commissioner’s Cup
Awarded to NCHSAA teams and athletic programs that highlight community service. Teams identify a community need, host a service project, and host a service project to meet that need.[9]
NCHSAA Athlete of the Year
The NCHSAA Athlete of the Year Award is awarded annually to a nominated male and female high school athlete in North Carolina, who have demonstrated success in multiple different sports. Winners of this award earn the Pat Best Memorial Trophy, named after the late Pat Best, who was a former principal at Goldsboro High School and president of the NCHSAA at the time of his death in 1988.[10]
Hall of Fame
The North Carolina High School Sports Hall of Fame is the hall of fame for high school athletics in North Carolina. It is administered by the NCHSAA and includes athletes, coaches, officials, broadcasters and others who have supported high school athletics in the state. The hall was created in 1987 with Bob Jamieson of Greensboro, Leon Brogden of Wilmington, and Dave Harris of Charlotte as charter members.[11]
