State issues response to alingment draft

The North Carolina High School Athletic Association issued a response to the first draft of the proposed conferences from 2013-17. Rick Strunk, the state athletic association’s associate commissioner of communications, sent an email to media members across the state detailing the initial draft for realignment.

“What we have thus far is a computer generated initial draft as our point of departure,” he said in the email.

SAS, a software company based in Cary, developed the first draft based on the NCHSAA’s guidelines. The state wanted six to eight teams in a conference, no split conferences and the member schools in the same geographical region.

The draft listed Lake Norman in a conference with Asheville Roberson, South Caldwell, McDowell, Watauga and Alexander Central. The average driving distance to those schools is 81.4 miles.

 “We recognize after seeing the initial drafts, and expected this anyway, that there might be places geographically where split conferences, for instance, may help.” Strunk said in the email. “But this is the beginning of the process and won't be approved until next May, so schools will have plenty of opportunity to provide feedback and alternative solutions, including at a series of meetings in January.

“The Realignment Committee will have a lot to take in.”

Lake Norman athletic director Steve Rankin said Wednesday the school plans to send a letter to the NCHSAA stating this conference is a problem area.

The first draft of the proposed realignment moved Lake Norman from the I-Meck while crosstown rival Mooresville stays in the league, 4A Conference No. 4, with six of the current I-Meck members. The league also picks up Kannapolis Brown and concord Robinson.

In the draft, South Iredell moves to 3A and is in 3A conference No. 4 with North Iredell, West Iredell and Statesville. The eight-team league also has three 3A teams from Catawba County and one from Caldwell County.

West Rowan, East Rowan, South Rowan and Carson now in the North Piedmont Conference are in another league with Southwestern Randolph and Asheboro. 

HERE IS THE ENTIRE STATEMENT FROM RICK STRUNK

I wanted to provide some information about the initial draft of the 2013-17 realignment that is now posted on the NCHSAA web site (under Select A Topic and then Realignment). Since our policy with this is always to let the schools have that information first, we sent it to member schools on Wednesday and that's why I didn't send anything to you prior to now. However, I do know many have already looked at the initial draft.

What we have thus far is a computer generated initial draft as our point of departure. SAS, one of the world's leading software companies, put it together based on parameters we provided: six to eight schools in a conference, to be clustered geographically  (they used a complicated algorithm to do that) and no split conferences in the initial draft.

We recognize after seeing the initial drafts, and expected this anyway, that there might be places geographically where split conferences, for instance,  may help. But this is the beginning of the process and won't be approved until next May, so schools will have plenty of opportunity to provide feedback and alternative solutions, including at a series of meetings in January. The Realignment Committee will have a lot to take in.

There was an error in calculations that will effect the realignment for 2013-17 in only the 2-A and 3-A classifications. The projected ADM of Cleveland High School was recorded incorrectly, and it should in fact be a 3-A school at 1291. That will drop East Davidson into the 2-A class. The number for Corinth-Holders should be adjusted to 1394 but does not change their classification. There are no other changes, but obviously these would effect some conferences in both the 2-A and 3-A classifications in the SAS initial draft that has been distributed to the schools.