Eligibility Rules

The NVHChi Rho Laurel Wreath SymbolAA is a member of and follows the Player Eligibility Rules for the Virginia Homeschool Athletic Association and Eastern Christian Conference.  These eligibility rules apply to all NVHAA players and teams. Unless otherwise published by NVHAA, if a student meets the below standards, they are eligible to play for NVHAA, in the playoffs, and in tournaments.

  1. Player must be a bona fide homeschooler or a homeschool dual-enrolled college student. There are three methods of homeschooling in Virginia: 1. Notice of Intent (NOI), 2. Religious Exemption, 3. Certified Tutor Provision. If in doubt, a player may be asked to provide proof of homeschooling either through a letter from Virginia indicating they are homeschooling or teacher’s Certification. Reference:  https://heav.org/virginia-homeschool-laws/   
  2. A player who has received a high school diploma is not eligible.
  3. Player must 13 to 18 years of age as of 1 August of the school year. Note: Age 12 athletes may eligible for certain NVHAA sports teams if listed at the teams registration and space is available. For other teams, case-by-case exceptions may be approved by coaches. If a middle school team is not available, then a 12 year old may be a practice player on certain teams after approval from the head coach.
  4. Player must be 18 years or younger as of 1 Aug of the school year playing.
  5. Player must have played less than four varsity seasons for the high school sport for which they are participating (that includes private or public schools in the past). Middle school and JV do not count.
  6. Player meets VHSAA eligibilty rules as listed below. 

IMPORTANT NOTE TO PARENTS: Age more than academic grade should dictate the competitive sports level for an athlete.  Homeschool parents often confuse the two when selecting the competitive team level for their athlete. Generally, an athlete should compete with other athletes who are at the same physical development. There is a rare occasion where an outstanding athlete needs to compete at higher levels. That would be addressed on a case-by-case basis and is not usually the athletic level of most athletes. The grade listed when registering will determine the number of years the athlete can participate on NVHAA sports teams.

If you are not sure, the following can be used as a general guideline for what grade to list on the registration forms: ( Age as of 1 Aug of school year)
High School (4 years of eligibility)
  • 17-18 yrs – 12th gr, 
  • 16-17 yrs- 11th gr
  • 15-16 yrs – 10th gr,
  • 14-15  yrs – 9th gr
Middle School: (Time playing as a middle school student on a varsity team, does not count towards the 4 years of high school eligibity.)
  • 14  yrs – 8th
  • 13  yrs   -7th

Any questions about eligibility can be sent to the NVHAA President at president@nvhaacenturions.org.

IMPORTANT VHSAA ELIGIBILITY RULES NOTE:

As a member of the Virginia Homeschool Athletic Association (VHSAA), NVHAA has to abide by certain eligibility rules limiting the movement of players from one home school sports program to another.

The Main Points are as follows:

​1. Multi-sport athletes are required to play all sports with the same program or organization, unless the athlete competes in a sport not offered by that organization, in which case they’re free to play for any organization offering that sport.

2. Players, who wish to change from one sports organization to another, must meet certain requirements and if necessary, follow a process requesting approval from VHSAA.

3. The rules apply to all VHSAA member programs and are similar to the rules already in place in North Carolina, as well as other states. 

4. The rules provide stability for home school sports programs, allowing them to grow and develop without the unexpected loss of players to competing organizations. 

For any questions or further information, please contact the NVHAA Athletic Director at adnvhaa@gmail.com .