Most people know that high school athletics in Virginia are sanctioned by the Virginia High School League (VHSL). What is not well-known is how schools are grouped and that every three to four years, the VHSL realigns schools, thus changing regional and state level opponents in the Commonwealth's high schools. The next realignment is set to take place in the 2023-2024 athletic season, running through the 2027 season. The Alignment Committee's recently-submitted proposal will impact several of our local schools, and it can get complicated, but we have you covered with all you need to know!

First, it is important to understand how schools are sectioned. There are districts, regions, and classes. Districts-the smallest of the entities-are given names along with common opponents that comprise a school's district schedule. Examples of local districts in our area are the Southeastern District (Great Bridge, Grassfield, Hickory, etc.), the Beach District (Kellam, Ocean Lakes, Princess Anne, etc.), and the Eastern District (Churchland, Lake Taylor, Maury, etc.).

Next are the regions, which contain schools from all districts but are still geographically ordered. Regions are assigned by letter, either A, B, C, or D. Our local schools are Region A.

Lastly, and most importantly, there are classes, which are numbered 1 through 6. Classes group schools based on Average Daily Membership (ADM), aka enrollment. The theory behind grouping based on enrollment is that schools with large student bodies have more student-athletes to pull from, thus increasing their chances of having better athletes. This prevents a school like Lake Taylor, which has an ADM of 788, from having to go through schools like Grassfield (ADM of 1,700) for a regional or state title. My opinion is that classes are vital to ensuring competitive fairness at the regional and state levels of post-season play.

The current proposal on the table would impact six of our local schools: Kellam, Ocean Lakes, Deep Creek, Great Bridge, Hickory, and King's Fork.
 

Below are two charts: one with the current class based on the 2018 realignment with ADM and one with the proposed class after realignment and the current ADM.