National Christian HomeSchool Championships are designed to provide top-quality tournaments for HomeSchool Student-Athletes. There are a series of eligibility rules that are designed to ensure that every participant is a HomeSchool Student first and an athlete second. As HomeSchool sports continue to grow, it is the NCHBC’s desire to make sure that the teams that participate in the HomeSchool division of the NCHBC tournaments do not have a resemblance of AAU-type teams or all-star teams. These rules are not only meant to keep the playing field level at the National Tournaments but are also designed to protect the reputation of HomeSchool teams on a national and local level.

Note: The following rules apply to both the National Championships and NCHBC-sanctioned Regional Tournaments.

"Homeschooling" is defined to mean that a student’s education is parent-directed.

As such, the parents shall be involved in their child’s education by assuming the role of principal or headmaster, thereby (1) setting the date and requirements for high school graduation; (2) selecting and approving course materials and study schedules; and (3) selecting tutors, correspondence courses, videos, computer courses, and similar resources for their child’s education.

College Classes

It is understood that a student may have the opportunity to take dual-credit college courses, particularly in his/her junior or senior year. The NCHBC encourages such enrollment by HomeSchool students, and the definition above shall not be construed to mean that such students are not homeschooled if the participating college admitted the HomeSchool student as a high school student. However, the student may not take enough courses to be deemed a “Full-Time Student” by the college or university. Additionally, the student must maintain at least 51% of his/her education from classes that meet the homeschooling definition.

Private and Public Schools

Full-time enrollment in a traditional public or private school is not homeschooling because the child’s education in such schools is not parent-directed. A player that attends a private, public, charter, or university-model school full-time is not eligible in HomeSchool divisions. For part-time students at these types of schools, the student must maintain at least 51% of his/her education from classes that meet the homeschooling definition.

Coop and Umbrella Schools

The participation in a cooperative school, and/or an umbrella school can create some questions. In some states, "HomeSchool students" are required by law to attend a private school and, in such cases, cooperative or umbrella schools are formed for this purpose. These schools, whether called cooperative, umbrella, or "private,” are characterized by significant and direct parental involvement, often simply representing different forms of homeschooling within a group of like-minded families. In such cases where the student-athlete meets the definition of HomeSchooling and is involved in a coop and umbrellas school, he/she is deemed eligible by the NCHBC.

Vocational Classes

In some states, “HomeSchool students” are permitted to take classes at vocational schools. A student may take classes at such schools as long as he/she maintains at least 51% of his education from classes that meet the homeschooling definition.

51% Rule

For clarification purposes, a normal course load for a full-time student is six (6) core courses; therefore, if a student-athlete is taking more than three (3) courses at a public, private, vocational, or college institution, he/she is not considered 51% homeschooled. If there are special circumstances, a student may apply for a hardship exemption.

Academics

Each member team and/or program shall have standards in place to make sure that all participating players maintain at least a 2.0 GPA (on a 4-point scale) during the active season.

Age Restrictions

Boys and Girls 10-and-under, 12-and-under, 14-and-under, 16-and-under, and 18-and-under are the ten different age groups offered. A player’s age group is determined by his/her age on September 1, 2010. For example, a player who is 16 on September 1, 2010, but turns 17 on October 5th is considered eligible to play in the 16-and-under age group at the 2011 National Championships. Players may play in a higher age group, if desired.

Transfer Students

Any student who transfers from a public school, Christian/private School, or another HomeSchool team and is under disciplinary action(s) must wait one (1) year before he/she is eligible to participate in any NCHBC activity or play against other HomeSchool teams. All other transferred players must complete a transfer request and submit it to the Eligibility Committee prior to the first day of practice in order to be declared eligible.

Additional Educational Requirements

• A player that has participated in a graduation ceremony is not eligible to participate at the National Christian HomeSchool Basketball Championships.
• To be eligible for participation in the National Christian HomeSchool Basketball Championships, a player must be homeschooled continuously from October 1st to the beginning of this year’s tournament.

Additional Non-Educational Requirements

• A player must live at home with his/her parent or legal guardian in order to be considered HomeSchooled.
• A player cannot be married.
• A player must live within a 60-mile radius of the team’s practice facility.

If a player is declared ineligible to play at Nationals or Regional’s and the team uses the players in games against other HomeSchool teams attending Nationals or Regional’s that game will be considered a forfeit.

Additional Penalties

It the NCHBC position that any player who is in violation of the eligibility guidelines will have intentionally and willfully violate the rules. Furthermore, it will be our position that the coach will have failed to monitor his players. The penalty for any eligibility guideline violations during Nationals is the forfeit of the last game, team moved to loser bracket, the player suspended from the tournament and the program placed on probation of up to two years.