THOMASTON, Ga. — The opening stages of reclassification for the Georgia High School Association began in earnest on Thursday.
The Reclassification Committee met with the sole purpose of finding an equitable way to divide its more than 430 member schools beginning with the 2024-25 school year for a two-year period.
GHSA Executive Director Robin Hines told the committee of the reclassification rules adopted by the State Executive Committee at its April 11, 2023 meeting, that there will be a reduction from seven classes to six.
Hines also reminded the committee that students entering the feeder school of a member high school in grades K-5 would be exempted from any multiplier applied to out-of-district students for the purposes of reclassification. Hines added that the goal of going to six classes was to help with school travel.
However, one key element expected to change that did not was a motion on the current 3.0 multiplier. Despite some committee members feeling that the impact of the multiplier would be lessened by the new K-5 rule, Vice President and reclassification chair Curt Miller made a motion to keep the multiplier at 3.0. The motion was unanimously approved.
The committee then agreed to vote on the classification percentages when the committee meets again on Oct. 1.
PROPOSED CHANGES FOR RECLASSIFICATION:
(1) Class 6A: Largest 14% (approximately) of schools. Note: Schools may opt to play up into 6A., but no school may move down.
(2) Class A Public/Private: Smallest 26% (approximately) of schools. Note: Non- football playing schools will NOT be counted when calculating the schools being placed in Class A. They will be placed in appropriate regions later.
(3) The remaining schools (after 6A and Class A are populated) will be divided into four (4) approximately equal classifications (2A through 5A) with 24-26% in each class at the discretion of the Reclassification Committee.
(4) When schools opt to move up in classification, only the exact number of schools at the bottom of the next class will be given the option to come down. If any of those schools opt not to come down, the GHSA office will not look further to larger schools in that class.
(5) The Reclassification Committee will assign all classifications into regions. NOTE: Class A will be divided into two (2) divisions and each division will be assigned into regions
6A – 64 schools
5A – 60 schools
4A – 60 schools
3A – 60 schools
2A – 60 schools
1A, Div. 1 – 60 football playing schools
1A, Div. 2 – 60 football playing school
