North Dakota

Status

What We Discovered

North Dakota does not have a state law addressing NIL. This grants the North Dakota High School Activities Association (NDHSAA), which governs high school athletics in North Dakota, the authority to make decisions regarding NIL. During a NDHSAA board meeting in June 2022, the association amended its amateurism bylaws to permit Name, Image, and Likeness (NIL) opportunities for high school athletes. See the high school section below for more details. Collegiate athletes should adhere to their current National Collegiate Association guidelines. To see NCAA, NJCAA, and NAIA guidelines, click here. 

Bylaws | NDHSAA Constitution & By-Laws and Handbook of Interpretations

Excerpt | ARTICLE VIII: Amateurism, IX Awards

Article VIII: Amateurism

SECTION I: All contestants must be amateurs.

SECTION II: Professionalism is defined as accepting remuneration, directly or indirectly, for playing on athletic teams or for managing, officiating or playing under assumed names. Reasonable meals, lodging and transportation may be accepted if accepted in service and not in any other way.

SECTION III: A student shall be considered as violating his/her amateur standing if he/she participates in athletic activities, tryouts, practices and games held or sponsored by professional athletic organizations, clubs, or their representatives during the season of a sport. This rule shall not apply to activities during the summer vacation.

NOTE: Any employee or school official of a member school who acts as an agent or encourages any negotiations between a student and representatives of Organized Baseball prior to the student’s graduation is violating the agreement between the National Federation and Organized Baseball. Such action on the part of any employee or school official may cause his/her school to be suspended from the Association for a period of time to be determined by the Board. Any evidence that a representative of Organized Baseball is attempting to, or has signed a student prior to graduation, should be reported to the Secretary at once. This is a violation of the agreement between the National Federation and Organized Baseball, and penalty for such action is under the jurisdiction of Organized Baseball.

SECTION IV: No high school student shall be eligible to participate in any interschool contest or activity under the rules of the Association if it shall be shown that he/she or any member of his/her family is receiving or has received any remuneration, either directly or indirectly, to influence him/her or his/her family to reside in a given school district or to attend any given school in order to establish eligibility on the team or organizations of said school, and any school permitting such participation shall, upon satisfactory evidence, be suspended from membership in the Association for a term of not less than a year. This rule shall not interfere with the right of high school pupils to work during vacation or during outof-school hours in order to pay their way through school. It shall apply to the use of funds created by gift or by subscription with the intent of offering them or parts of them for the free use of the student or any member of his/her family as an inducement to secure their attendance at said school and to become eligible for participation in the activities thereof.

SECTION V: Reinstatement of amateur status: A high school student who has violated his/her amateur standing according to the rules and By-Laws of the Association may apply for reinstatement as an amateur to the Board one calendar year after the date he/she was declared ineligible on account of the violation, provided he/she has been in school throughout the year. Such application shall be in writing and shall be signed by the student and superintendent or principal, and shall certify that one calendar year has elapsed since the student was declared ineligible, and that the student has not violated amateur rules during that calendar year.

INTERPRETATIONS SECTIONS I, II, III, IV, V or Article VIII – Amateurism

Please note that this article attempts to define and distinguish between amateurism and professionalism. This section applies specifically to athletic contests and is not applicable to music and speech events. This particular section is in the By-Laws to protect a student in his/her high school days and also to deter him/her from committing an act which would affect his/her amateur standing as a prospective college athlete. A student may benefit from the use of their name, image and likeness (NIL) consistent with current NDHSAA regulations. (June 2022) Article IX: Awards

Article IX: Awards

SECTION I: A student activities participant may not accept monetary compensation in recognition of activities ability, participation and/or achievement. (Oct. 2016)

NOTE: The giving and receiving of awards with the consent and under the supervision of the superintendent and/or principal concerned shall mean that the supervising official of each school shall have real control and supervision without pressure of any kind from outside persons or groups of persons.

SECTION II: A student may accept non-monetary compensation or items of value solely in recognition of activities ability, participation and/or achievement if the total monetary compensation or items of value including the actual value of any gift certificate (so long as they are not convertible to cash), discounts, coupons, etc., does not exceed the amount set by the NDHSAA Board of Directors during the Association year (July 1 – June 30). (Oct. 2016)

INTERPRETATIONS SECTION I & II of Article IX – Awards

Art IX – Sec I & II .a. All awards must be kept within reasonable bounds. Individual awards are limited to those that do not exceed the amount set by the NDHSAA Board of Directors ($300.00). (Jan. 2016)

SECTION III: Non-monetary compensation or items of value does not include customary awards of symbolic nature without resale value such as the school’s athletic letter, medals, ribbons, certificates, plaques, trophies and other emblems, provided the cost of the award does not exceed the amount set by the NDHSAA Board of Directors. (Oct. 2016)

NOTE: This rule does not regulate or prohibit compensation received by a student for ability, participation and/or achievement in a non-NDHSAA sponsored sport or activity, nor does this rule prohibit the acceptance of college scholarships by students.

INTERPRETATIONS SECTION III of Article IX – Awards

Art IX – Sec III .a. Art IX – Sec III .b. All awards must be given with the consent and approval of the superintendent or principal concerned. Schools or conferences of schools may give awards provided they conform to items one and two above.

SECTION IV: A coach or director is responsible for reporting to the school’s athletic/activities director all compensation or items of value received by the students on that coach/director’s team within one month of the receipt of the compensation or items of value. School administration is responsible for verifying that the total sum of compensation or items of value received by each student participant at that school does not exceed the retail value amount set in Section II. (Oct. 2016)

SECTION V: The NDHSAA Board shall have authority to designate, give and control medals and trophies to be awarded to schools or individuals on championship teams in any sport or activity, provided that these awards are kept within the bounds of Section III. (Oct. 2016)

INTERPRETATIONS SECTION V of Article IX – Awards

Art IX – Sec V .a. No award may be given or accepted that in any way advertises any firm or individual business product.

SECTION VI: Penalties for violations of the above rules may be suspension of the school and ineligibility of the individual who accepts the award. (Oct. 2016)

INTERPRETATIONS SECTION VI of Article IX – Awards

Art IX – Sec VI .a. No cash awards are permissible. Scholarships which are deposited with the college for the student are permissible awards.