Boy’s High School Volleyball Grows 16.2%

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According to the National Federation of High Schools (NFHS) report released on September 5th, boy’s high school volleyball continued its growth pattern. During the 2006-2007 school year, the number of schools having boy’s volleyball programs grew from 1,726 schools to 2,006 schools, a 16.2% increase.

The number of boys participating in boy’s high school volleyball grew from 42,878 to 46,224, an increase of 3,346 boys. The 46,224 participation number now exceeds the 1973-1974 numbers (43,050) and is the third highest rate since NFHS has collected and published the participation information. The NFHS results are based on figures from the 50 state high school athletic/activity associations, plus the District of Columbia that are members of the NFHS.

The highest number of boys participating in high school volleyball according to NHFS records is 63,544 which occurred during the 1971-1972 school year. The following year, Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 (Title IX) legislation was passed. In an unfortunate side-effect of an otherwise very positive goal, boy’s and men’s volleyball opportunities shrank drastically as schools attempted to comply with Title IX requirements.

Graphs of boy’s high school volleyball participation and growth rates can be found at: Boy's High School Volleyball Growth