Iowa sets grade-eight sports rules and 140-day varsity limits

The state board of education must adopt rules allowing eighth-grade students to compete in school-sponsored interscholastic athletics on the same basis as students in grades nine through twelve. The rules cover activities offered by school districts, nonpublic schools, and charter schools. The board must adopt emergency rules to carry out this provision. The emergency rules must also be published as a notice of intended action. The eighth-grade rules provision and the emergency-rule requirement take effect when enacted, and the emergency rules must be effective no later than August 1, 2026.

A student in grades nine through twelve who transfers schools would be barred from varsity athletics for 140 calendar days after enrolling at the new school. The restriction applies to students in grades nine through twelve who transfer from one school to another. Summer enrollment does not count toward the 140-day period. The restriction does not apply when an existing exception applies or when the state board finds a similar circumstance under its rules. The restriction applies only to varsity contests and competitions. This provision takes effect August 1, 2026, and the 140-day period begins after enrollment at the new school.

A student using open enrollment to attend grades nine through twelve outside the home district would be ineligible for varsity athletics during the first 140 calendar days of enrollment. The rule covers students attending a school district other than the district where they live through open enrollment. A student may participate immediately when one of the listed exceptions applies. The supplied text does not include the details of those exceptions. This provision takes effect August 1, 2026, and applies during the student's first 140 calendar days of enrollment in the district.