WIAA To Consider NIL Opportunities For Athletes At Today's Annual Meeting

Wednesday, April 24th, 2024 -- 8:50 AM

At today's Annual Meeting in Stevens Point, the WIAA member schools will consider three constitutional amendments, the most noteworthy of which would provide Name, Image, and Likeness (NIL) opportunities for high school students.

The Annual Meeting, held this year for the first time at Sentry Theater in Stevens Point, provides an opportunity for schools to get together in one location for the only time during the year, as staff and Board of Control members will provide updates to the membership, including a Director's Report from Executive Director Stephanie Hauser.

Name, Image, and Likeness has been a hot button topic at the collegiate level the last couple years, and at least 30 states have some form of NIL at the high school level. The proposal up for vote would allow athletes to be compensated for the use of their name, image, and likeness, though there would be limitations and guidelines that the WIAA hopes would prevent the widespread issues that have plagued college athletics.  While college athletics has much more open rules regarding NIL, there would be more safeguards under the WIAA proposal to avoid manipulation and abuse.

While NIL has garnered the most attention, there are two other amendments that the association will vote on today.

The first would provide more opportunities for high school coaches to provide programming and instruction during the school year but outside the sports season via camps and clinics.

The second proposed amendment would allow limited, specific use of video replay for schools to appeal ejections and subsequent suspensions due to misidentification of the offending athlete. If a school appeals and provides video evidence that the wrong player was ejected, the one-game suspension can be repealed by WIAA Executive staff. The language does NOT allow schools to appeal whether the player committed an act that should have led to ejection.

For all Constitutional Amendments, a simple majority of schools in attendance would need to vote in the affirmative for the measure to pass.

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