AG Rokita Sues IHSAA to Eliminate Race Quota from High School Sports Leadership

The IHSAA has released a statement regarding the lawsuit.

INDIANAPOLIS - Attorney General Todd Rokita announced today his office is suing the Indiana High School Athletic Association, Inc. to force the immediate elimination of a race-based quota that reserves two seats on IHSAA’s Board of Directors for “qualified minorities,” defined in the Association’s bylaws as “an individual other than a white male or female.” 

“Hoosier students should not be governed by a sports association that picks its leaders based on race,” Attorney General Rokita said. “IHSAA’s quota tells kids that skin color, rather than merit, is an appropriate way to judge people. That lesson has no place in Indiana’s education system, and, regardless, the law does not permit it. The IHSAA exists to build character. A racial litmus test for choosing leadership on the IHSAA’s board does the opposite, and after months of delay, the Association left us no choice but to take legal action."

The lawsuit asks the court to: 

• Permanently enjoin IHSAA from reserving Board of Directors seats based on race; 
• Prohibit any future bylaw or policy that allocates board seats directly or indirectly based on race; and 
• Declare that the existing minority-quota provisions violate state law. 

IHSAA has maintained some version of its racial quota since 1993. Under the current 2026-27 bylaws, two of the Association’s 19 board seats are closed to white men and white women solely because of race. Nominating petitions for those seats must verify the candidate’s racial eligibility. 

Attorney General Rokita’s lawsuit alleges that an express racial classification of this kind is an abuse of authority conferred by law, a waste of corporate assets, and incompatible with the public purpose for which IHSAA was organized. 

The office of attorney general first demanded IHSAA eliminate the quota on April 23, 2026. IHSAA refused to act and said only that it might consider bylaw changes in May 2027. After additional notice and an August 25 Executive Committee meeting that produced no change, the suit was filed. 

The IHSAA released the following statement: 

The IHSAA is disappointed that litigation was filed despite our willingness to consider the Attorney General's concerns through our established governance and bylaw review processes. Founded in 1903, the IHSAA is a voluntary, privately funded non-profit organization serving more than 400 high schools across Indiana. The association is fully self-sustaining and does not rely on taxpayer dollars.

Our purpose is to ensure high school student-athletes can experience rewarding opportunities on the field or court, develop meaningful and fulfilling relationships with coaches and teammates—all without superseding academics as each student-athlete's ultimate priority.

The IHSAA disagrees with any suggestion that our bylaws violate federal and state civil rights laws or in any way constitute an abuse of its nonprofit status. To the contrary, the IHSAA is committed to serving all student-athletes and member schools throughout Indiana. Consistent with that mission, we value broad representation and diverse perspectives among those who help guide and support interscholastic athletics across the state.

For more than a century, the IHSAA has governed high school athletics on behalf of its member schools. It is unfortunate that distractions like today's lawsuit take away focus from what really matters: the student-athletes.