The National Federation of State High School Associations (NFHS) is the body that writes the rules of competition for most

high school A secondary school describes an institution that provides secondary education and also usually includes the building where this takes place. Some secondary schools provide both '' lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) and ''upper seconda ...

sports and activities in the

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. NFHS's headquarters are located in White River State Park in Indianapolis,

Indiana Indiana () is a U.S. state in the Midwestern United States. It is the 38th-largest by area and the 17th-most populous of the 50 States. Its capital and largest city is Indianapolis. Indiana was admitted to the United States as the 19th ...

Member and affiliate associations

Over 19,500 high schools belong to associations that are members of the NFHS. Most high schools, whether

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or private, belong to their state's high school association; in turn, each state association belongs to the NFHS. However, in states that have separate associations for public and non-public high schools, only the public-school bodies are full NFHS members. For example, the

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...

University Interscholastic League (public schools, with non-public schools generally not allowed) is a full member; the largest association governing non-public schools, the Texas Association of Private and Parochial Schools, is an affiliate member, while other governing bodies are not NFHS members at any level. Similarly, the Virginia High School League, open only to public schools, is a full member, the state's largest association for non-public schools is an affiliate member, and other governing bodies are not members at all. The case in

Mississippi Mississippi () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States, bordered to the north by Tennessee; to the east by Alabama; to the south by the Gulf of Mexico; to the southwest by Louisiana; and to the northwest by Arkansas. Mis ...

is slightly different; the body governing public schools is a full member, while the body governing private schools is not an NFHS member at any level. In the state of Alabama, the public schools and a handful of private schools compete in the AHSAA ( Alabama High School Athletic Association) which is a full member of the NFHS. The majority of private schools in the state are members of the AISA ( Alabama Independent School Association) a non-member that uses NFHS rules. The AHSAA will not allow its members to play AISA schools but the AISA schools do compete with public and private schools outside of Alabama. 250px, NFHS Headquarters, with the NCAA Hall of Champions in the background Iowa has separate governing associations for boys' and girls' sports – the Iowa High School Athletic Association and the Iowa Girls High School Athletic Union. Only the Iowa High School Athletic Association is a full member of the NFHS; the girls' governing body is an affiliate member. The provincial associations of

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tota ...

are affiliate members of the NFHS. The NFHS publishes rules books for each sport or activity, and most states adopt those rules wholly for state high school competition including the non member private school associations. The NFHS offered an online Coach Education Program in January 2007. It released a course, Fundamentals of Coaching. The NFHS has announced that it will offer a National Coach Certification in September 2009. This will enable to coaches to become a Level 1 - Accredited Interscholastic Coach issued by the NFHS.

Member associations

* Alabama High School Athletic Association * Alaska School Activities Association * Arizona Interscholastic Association * Arkansas Activities Association *

California Interscholastic Federation The California Interscholastic Federation (CIF) is the governing body for high school sports in the U.S. state of California. CIF membership includes both public and private high schools. Unlike most other state organizations, it does not have ...

* Colorado High School Activities Association * Connecticut Interscholastic Athletic Conference * Delaware Interscholastic Athletic Association * District of Columbia Interscholastic Athletic Association * District of Columbia State Athletic Association * Florida High School Athletic Association * Georgia High School Association * Hawaii High School Athletic Association * Idaho High School Activities Association * Illinois High School Association *

Indiana High School Athletic Association The Indiana High School Athletic Association (IHSAA) is the arbiter of interscholastic competition among public and private high schools in the U.S. state of Indiana. It monitors a system that divides athletically-competing high schools in Indian ...

* Iowa High School Athletic Association * Kansas State High School Activities Association * Kentucky High School Athletic Association * Louisiana High School Athletic Association * Maine Principals' Association * Maryland Public Secondary Schools Athletic Association * Massachusetts Interscholastic Athletic Association * Michigan High School Athletic Association *

Minnesota State High School League The Minnesota State High School League (MSHSL) is a voluntary, non-profit association for the support and governance of interscholastic activities at high schools in Minnesota, United States. The association supports interscholastic athletics an ...

* Mississippi High School Activities Association * Missouri State High School Activities Association *

Montana High School Association The Montana High School Association (MHSA) is the governing body of high school athletics in the state of Montana. It was founded in 1921 and today consists of 180+ member schools. Classification The MHSA divides schools based upon their total enr ...

* Nebraska School Activities Association * Nevada Interscholastic Activities Association * New Hampshire Interscholastic Athletic Association * New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association * New Mexico Activities Association * New York State Public High School Athletic Association *

North Carolina High School Athletic Association The North Carolina High School Athletic Association (NCHSAA) is the governing organization of high school athletics in North Carolina, United States. The association maintains the official rule books and governs the officiating standards across ...

* North Dakota High School Activities Association * Ohio High School Athletic Association * Oklahoma Secondary School Activities Association * Oregon School Activities Association * Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic Association * Rhode Island Interscholastic League * South Carolina High School League *

South Dakota High School Activities Association South Dakota High School Activities Association governs high school sports and other activities in the state of South Dakota. The SDHSAA was founded in 1905 and has been a member of the National Federation of State High School Associations since ...

* Tennessee Secondary School Athletic Association * University Interscholastic League (Texas) * Utah High School Activities Association * Vermont Principals' Association * Virginia High School League * Washington Interscholastic Activities Association * West Virginia Secondary School Activities Commission *

Wisconsin Interscholastic Athletic Association The Wisconsin Interscholastic Athletic Association (WIAA) is the regulatory body for all high school sports in Wisconsin. Its history dates to 1895, making it the earliest continually existing high school athletic organization in the country. I ...

* Wyoming High School Activities Association

Affiliate associations

* Alberta Schools Athletic Association *

British Columbia School Sports BC School Sports is an organisation dedicated to organising sport competition in the province of British Columbia, Canada. Overview and History BC School Sports was created in 1965, and was originally known as the British Columbia Federation ...

* Department of Defense Education Activity *

Florida School Music Association Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, a ...

* Georgia Independent School Association * Illinois Elementary School Association * Independent Interscholastic Athletic Association of Guam * Iowa Girls High School Athletic Union *

Iowa High School Music Association Iowa () is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States, bordered by the Mississippi River to the east and the Missouri River and Big Sioux River to the west. It is bordered by six states: Wiscon ...

Manitoba High Schools Athletic Association, Inc , image_map = Manitoba in Canada 2.svg , map_alt = Map showing Manitoba's location in the centre of Southern Canada , Label_map = yes , coordinates = , capital = Winn ...

Michigan Interscholastic Forensic Association Michigan () is a state in the Great Lakes region of the upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the 10th-largest state by population, the 11th-largest by area, and th ...

* New Brunswick Interscholastic Athletic Association * Nova Scotia School Athletic Federation * Ontario Federation of School Athletic Associations *

Oregon Interscholastic Ski Racing Association Oregon () is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. The Columbia River delineates much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while the Snake River delineates much of it ...

* Pennsylvania Independent Schools Athletic Association * Réseau du sport étudiant du Québec *

Saint Thomas Saint John Interscholastic Association In religious belief, a saint is a person who is recognized as having an exceptional degree of holiness, likeness, or closeness to God. However, the use of the term ''saint'' depends on the context and denomination. In Catholic, Eastern Ortho ...

Saskatchewan High Schools Athletic Association Saskatchewan ( ; ) is a province in western Canada, bordered on the west by Alberta, on the north by the Northwest Territories, on the east by Manitoba, to the northeast by Nunavut, and on the south by the U.S. states of Montana and North Dako ...

* School Sports Newfoundland and Labrador * South Carolina Independent School Association *

St. Croix Interscholastic Athletic Association ST, St, or St. may refer to: Arts and entertainment * Stanza, in poetry * Suicidal Tendencies, an American heavy metal/hardcore punk band * Star Trek, a science-fiction media franchise * Summa Theologica, a compendium of Catholic philosophy an ...

* Texas Association of Private and Parochial Schools * Virginia Independent Schools Athletic Association *

Wisconsin High School Forensic Association Wisconsin () is a state in the upper Midwestern United States. Wisconsin is the 25th-largest state by total area and the 20th-most populous. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake Mich ...

* Wisconsin School Music Association

Players by sport

Executive Directors

* L. W. Smith, 1920–27 (secretary of the board) * C. W. Whitten, 1927–40 (manager, later executive secretary) * H. V. Porter, 1940–58 (executive secretary) *

Cliff Fagan Clifford B. Fagan (March 3, 1911 – January 18, 1995) was a high school basketball referee who became executive director of the National Federation of State High School Athletic Associations (NFHS) and eventually president of the Basketball Hall ...

, 1958–77 (executive secretary) * Brice B. Durbin, 1977–1993 * Robert F. Kanaby, 1993–2010 * Robert B. Gardner, 2010–2018 * Karissa Niehoff, 2018–present

National High School Hall of Fame

The National High School Hall of Fame is a program of the National Federation of State High School Associations that honors individuals who have made outstanding contributions to high school sports or performing arts. Since 1986, the Hall of Fame enshrinement ceremony has been the final event of the National Federation's annual summer meeting, which is held in late June and early July and attended by board members and executives of the state high school associations.

References, including organizations' official websites

External links

*
NFHS Learn

NFHS Record Book covering various sports, including baseball, basketball, softball, football, and both field and ice hockey
{{DEFAULTSORT:National Federation Of State High School Associations * Associations of schools Sports in Indianapolis Sports organizations established in 1920 1920 establishments in the United States Sports governing bodies in the United States Non-profit organizations based in Indianapolis