2026-2027 Scholastic Regulations

The Scholastic Council and the Executive Board have approved the 2026-2027 Scholastic Regulations. This year’s regulations can be found here. Substantive changes in this year’s regulations include:

Section 5.2.1 revises the definition of a school and various types of school organizations such as a public school district, private school, and charter school to clarify eligibility criteria for teams in Section 5.3.
Section 4.3 introduces new language on Section Eligibility for players who scored 6.0 or better in an Under section of the previous year’s Spring Nationals. What’s new is that a 6.0 or better score in a Spring Nationals during the current school year can affect a player’s section eligibility.
Section 4.4 specifies how appeals of player eligibility are handled before a tournament and onsite after the tournament begins.
Section 4.7 revises the definition of an Unrated Player.
Section 4.6 updates how the Tournament Review Group examines players’ current ratings, as well as their ratings over the past 12 months before a tournament. The Regulations now provide examples of how the Tournament Review Group evaluates situations when players have ratings in multiple systems.
Section 4.8 is a completely new section to address the Re-sectioning of players.
Section 10.3 eliminates the Unrated Section in the K-8 Nationals and K-6 Nationals. Unrated players will now play in the lowest Under sections of those events.
Section 11.1.8 specifies penalties TDs shall impose for players who violate the rules for chess notation.
Section 13.8 clarifies when a game result is determined and final.
Section 14.3 refines guidance on the number of awards (trophies and medals) US Chess should order for individual and team awards.
Section 3.2.2 clarifies and extends onsite registration.