The OFSAA Annual General Meeting (AGM) was held April 16th – 17th with association representatives across the province in attendance.
The assembly voted on a number of motions, a selection of which are detailed below.
CLASSIFICATIONS
At the 2014 AGM, OFSAA’s classification system was changed to have three levels – A, AA, and AAA effective 2015, thus eliminating the AAAA category.
Effective in the 2015-16 school year associations shall place their schools in classifications for the following school year based on their student full-time equivalent enrolment as of October 31st of the current school year:
A = 1-500
AA = 501-950
AAA = 951+
An all-boys or all-girls school shall have their enrolment doubled for the purposes of determining student population numbers.
Additionally, OFSAA’s Northern associations maintains the adjustment of +100 students for upper cap at the “A” category and +50 for upper cap at the “AA” category.
Events which had been classified A/AA and AAA/AAAA (boys’ and girls’ hockey, boys’ and girls’ rugby, and boys’ field lacrosse) will now be: “A/AA” and “AAA”
ELIGIBILITY FOR COMPETITION
OFSAA Championships and Festivals for team sports shall only involve teams that have used OFSAA-eligible student-athletes in all competition during the school year. Any team using an ineligible student-athlete(s) in any competition during the school year forfeits the right to participate in the OFSAA Championship or Festival.
Teams sports shall be considered to be: boys’ golf, field hockey, football, basketball, volleyball, hockey, curling, baseball, rugby, field lacrosse, and soccer.
TRANSFER POLICY
Students who attended an alternative school or alternative program who are returning to the school they attended prior, are not considered transfer students provided they did not play sports while at the alternative school or alternative program.
RECRUITING
OFSAA recognizes that recruiting of student-athletes conflicts with the aims and objectives of the organization. As a result, a more detailed section has been added in the OFSAA by-laws, which includes a definition of recruitment, rationale for a recruitment policy, and a list of indicators.
SPORT CRITERIA
OFSAA has adopted new guidelines to determine which events shall be considered to have OFSAA Championship or Festival status. Each Championship and Festival shall undergo an annual review to determine if it is meeting the criteria. Updated criteria will help OFSAA reflect current participation trends in secondary schools.
Sports that have Championship status, and no longer meet the criteria, shall be moved to Festival status. A sport shall remain a Festival for a maximum of five years if it meets Festival criteria. After five years if the sport does not meet Championship status it will no longer operate under OFSAA jurisdiction. Festivals who do not meet those criteria will have one year to meet the criteria or will no longer operate under OFSAA jurisdiction.
BASKETBALL
OFSAA has elected to transition from NFHS basketball rules and adopt FIBA playing regulations in September 2016 for both girls’ and boys’ basketball with the following exceptions:
– A 35 second shot clock will be used. Full reset on fouls and shots off the rim
– Federation lines will be used even when FIBA lines are available
– Federation timeout procedure, and game length will be used including overtime
– No dunking in the warm-up will be permitted
FOOTBALL
The OFSAA Football Bowl Games series has decided on a new Festival format. For the next two years (2015 & 2016) the following nine games will be played, with one of two associations drawn to compete in 2015, and the other automatically competing in that bowl game in 2016. The remaining nine associations will be drawn to determine their pairing.
Bowl Games
Western Bowl – SWOSSAA/ WOSSAA
Golden Horseshoe Bowl – GHAC/ SOSSA
Metro Bowl – TDCAA/ TDSSAA
Central Bowl – CWOSSA/ ROPSSAA
Simcoe Bowl – GBSSA/ YRAA
National Capital Bowl – NCSSAA/ EOSSAA
Northern Bowl – NOSSA/ NWOSSAA
Eastern Bowl – LOSSA/ COSSA
Independent Bowl – CISAA/ 2nd Entry
