This is intriguing. A new high school sports association - the Gulf States Independent Athletic Association - is receiving interest from both private and public schools.
Dissatisfaction with the AHSAA’s controversial split of public and private schools earlier this year — especially unequal competition and travel — the promise of equal representation and what officials said will be a better and fairer revenue-sharing model is attracting a lot of interest from private and public schools to leave the AHSAA.
Right now, the association is centered around Alabama and the Florida Panhandle, but could expand into neighboring states.
They have good branding, a really good revenue streaming model, a fair transfer rule. Got to think some Mississippi privates are watching.
Some highlights:
Student-athletes can transfer schools in the GSIAA and remain eligible to participate in athletics as long as the school they transfer from is 60 miles away from their original school. If the school is not within 60 miles away, that student-athlete will be ineligible for a year. Student-athletes transferring from outside of the GSIAA do not have to automatically sit out as long as they are in good standing with their previous schools.
The GSIAA's membership is open to public, private and charter schools. Unlike the AHSAA, those schools will compete with each other in their set classifications. Classifications will be determined by enrollment. There will not be a multiplier or competitive balance factor.
Lott explained that 50% of a revenue surplus distribution would distributed equally among all member schools. The remaining 50% would be distributed based on school enrollment. The GSIAA has been in contact with corporate sponsorship agreements that could benefit the association's member schools. But couldn't get into any to the specifics until deals were finalized.
Dissatisfaction with the AHSAA’s controversial split of public and private schools earlier this year — especially unequal competition and travel — the promise of equal representation and what officials said will be a better and fairer revenue-sharing model is attracting a lot of interest from private and public schools to leave the AHSAA.
Right now, the association is centered around Alabama and the Florida Panhandle, but could expand into neighboring states.
They have good branding, a really good revenue streaming model, a fair transfer rule. Got to think some Mississippi privates are watching.
Some highlights:
Student-athletes can transfer schools in the GSIAA and remain eligible to participate in athletics as long as the school they transfer from is 60 miles away from their original school. If the school is not within 60 miles away, that student-athlete will be ineligible for a year. Student-athletes transferring from outside of the GSIAA do not have to automatically sit out as long as they are in good standing with their previous schools.
The GSIAA's membership is open to public, private and charter schools. Unlike the AHSAA, those schools will compete with each other in their set classifications. Classifications will be determined by enrollment. There will not be a multiplier or competitive balance factor.
Lott explained that 50% of a revenue surplus distribution would distributed equally among all member schools. The remaining 50% would be distributed based on school enrollment. The GSIAA has been in contact with corporate sponsorship agreements that could benefit the association's member schools. But couldn't get into any to the specifics until deals were finalized.
