THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT 
              Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: Thursday, October 31, 1996            TAG: 9610310312
SECTION: LOCAL                   PAGE: B3   EDITION: FINAL 
SOURCE: BY JON GLASS, STAFF WRITER 
DATELINE: NORFOLK                           LENGTH:   55 lines

NORFOLK SCHOOLS RECONSIDER GRADE REQUIREMENTS ATHLETES, OTHERS WOULD HAVE TO EARN OVERALL C AVERAGE TO PARTICIPATE.

The city school system may become the latest in South Hampton Roads to raise academic requirements for students who want to play sports and participate in other extracurricular activities.

A majority of School Board members said Wednesday they support a plan to toughen eligibility standards by requiring a C average.

The board on Wednesday assigned a committee of parents, coaches, principals and other school officials to study the plan. Board members said they want public comment before proceeding, acknowledging the move will be controversial.

Under the proposal, backed by Superintendent Roy D. Nichols Jr., students would need an overall C average - a 2.0 grade-point average based on a 4.0 scale - to participate in sports and other school-related activities.

Currently, under Virginia High School League requirements, student athletes need only to pass five subjects the previous semester to participate in activities ranging from cheerleading to wrestling.

``Those extracurricular activities are not a right, they're a privilege and ought to be earned,'' Nichols said. ``Anything we can do to encourage kids to perform at a higher level academically, I think, would be welcome.''

Suffolk and Portsmouth schools already require student athletes to earn a C average to play, and Virginia Beach also is considering it.

Four of the six board members at Wednesday's meeting favored raising academic standards; the other two were undecided.

``Sports are very demanding time-wise, and if we say we're going to let a child with a D average spend that much time practicing basketball or football is not in the child's best interest,'' said board member Joseph Waldo, who has been championing the idea. ``Children will reach for the expectations we set for them.''

Board Chairman Ulysses Turner, who said he is undecided, said the issue of underachieving athletes is important, and he said coaches should play a larger role in stressing academics to their players.

``They are the teachers and role models, and if they place more emphasis on academics, I think those athletes will do better,'' he said.

Nichols and board members said they hope to expand the idea of academic rigor beyond school activities, reaching out to city and community recreation sports leagues to tie participation to grades.

``Students are being identified early on as athletically competent, but now we don't have a high academic standard they can be pushed toward as they develop,'' said board member James Herndon.

Deputy Superintendent Frank Sellew, who chairs the Athletic Advisory Committee that will review the issue, said he is unsure how many students might be affected.

``I don't think it's a big figure, but there are some,'' Sellew said.

If the board decides to toughen standards, the new rules wouldn't take effect until next school year at the earliest, officials said.

KEYWORDS: NORFOLK SCHOOLS ACADEMIC REQUIREMENTS by CNB