South Mecklenburg High School – Athletic Participation

Mar 2026 · 2nd Semester

• Students must be enrolled at the school to which they are properly assigned under CMS student assignment rules. • Student-athletes establish a “sports school” at which they are eligible to participate in interscholastic athletics. The sports school for new students and 9th graders is the school in which the student is enrolled on the official first day of school. For other students, the sports school will usually be either the school attended the previous 365 days or the student’s home school. There are exceptions to this general rule. Contact the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools Athletics Department for detailed information at (980) 343-6980. • A student-athlete who changes schools after establishing a sports school, unless the new school is the student’s home school, is ineligible for 365 days. (A “home school” is the school that serves the area where the student lives.) This rule applies to students who transfer from a magnet program to another school or magnet program, even if they are on the same campus. • A student-athlete is prohibited from playing the same sport at two schools during the same sports season, even if the second school is the student’s home school. • No student may be eligible to participate at the high school level for a period lasting longer than eight (8) consecutive semesters, beginning with the student’s entry into the ninth grade or participation on a high school team, whichever occurs first. For students who skip the ninth grade and advance directly to the 10th from the eighth, the year prior to entering the 10th grade is considered the first year of entry into ninth grade for athletics. The principal shall have evidence of the date of each player’s entry into ninth grade. The North Carolina cumulative record is sufficient.