General Athletics Information

Residence Eligibility:  All students enrolled at Westlake High School are eligible to participate in athletics.  Incoming ninth grade students are eligible regardless of the school attendance area they live in.  However, students transfering to WHS during the 10th - 12th grades may be restricted or denied athletic eligibility.  Questions regarding residence eligibility should be brought to the attention of the Assistant Principal, Carnell Henderson, or the Athletic Coordinator, Kyle Kegley.

Academic Eligibility:  The CIF-SS and the Conejo Valley Unified School District require students, including entering ninth graders, to earn a 2.0 grade point average and pass 20 credit hours during the grading period prior to their season of sport.  Ninth graders must earn a minimum of a 2.0 GPA on their eighth grade report card in June.  

Students not meeting academic eligibility may file a co-curricular appeal to regain their eligibility.  The appeal decision will be based on any extenuating circumstances that may have caused the low grades and the student’s plan to improve. Students may only be granted one academic appeal during their eight semesters of attendance at Westlake High School.  Furthermore, students are required to pass at least four subjects (20 credits) per grading period and be making progress toward graduation to participate.

Per CIF rules, incoming Freshmen or Transfer athletes cannot discuss their participation in a sport privately with a coach until May 1st of the year in which they plan to enroll at WHS. Before May 1st, players/parents are only allowed to communicate with a coach at open-forum events such as Future Warrior Night or in the presence of a school athletic administrator.

Current WHS Students - Students who are currently enrolled at WHS should contact the Head Coach directly for information about joining a team.  Coach emails can be found in the WHS Coach Directory.  

Incoming Students - Before May 1st, incoming Freshmen and Transfer students should submit the WHS Sport Interest Form to be added to their sport's mailing list.  They will receive informaiton about upcoming meetings, camps, and/or tryouts after May 1st when CIF rules allow coaches to communicate with incoming students.  After May 1st and once a student is officially enrolled at WHS, students/parents may reach out to the Head Coach directly for information.

The CIF-SS and CVUSD require that all students wishing to participate in any high school sport complete the Athletic Clearance process prior to participation (this includes tryouts, practices, games, and summer camps).  At WHS, this process includes the following steps: 1) Obtain a sport medical clearance from a health practitioner using the official CVUSD form, 2) Complete an online clearance at www.HomeCampus.com which includes uploading the completed medical clearance form, 3) Print and sign the confirmation/consent letter from the online clearance and submit it to the athletics office.  Detailed instructions for this process are HERE.

Insurance:   All student-athletes must have medical insurance with accident/hospitalization coverage.  Proof of adequate private insurance is required or students may purchase Myers-Stevens & Toohey & Co., Inc. school insurance to satisfy this requirement.  More information can be found HERE.  Insurance forms for school insurance are available in the athletics office.

Student-Athletes at WHS are held to high standards.  The CVUSD Co-Curricular Code of Conduct and Contract outlines expectations for our student-athletes.  Students and parents will sign this document online as part of the Athletic Clearance process.

Should a student become ineligible to participate in athletic competitions due to a co-curricular violation, they may submit an appeal to be placed on probation or shorten their ineligibility period (co-curricular appeals procedures).  If a student is ineligible, the AP of Athletics will provide them with an appeal request form. 

Many sports conduct summer activities including practices, tryouts, training camps, and summer leagues.  These activities may be sponsored by the team, boosters, or an outside organization.  Participation in summer activities does not guarantee that a student will make the sport's competitive team during the school year.  Information about summer activities will be posted on the athletics website, advertised on social media, and/or emailed to students and parents directly.  Incoming Freshmen and Transfer students should submit the WHS Sport Interest Form to be placed on the mailing list to receive this information.  Students must be enrolled at WHS and complete their Athletic Clearance to participate in school-sponsored summer activities (activities sponsored by outside organizations are not considered school-sponsored events).

Many (not all) sports at WHS require students to try out before making a team.  Information about tryouts will be announced at school, posted on the athletics website, advertised on social media, and/or emailed to students and parents directly.  Many try outs take place during the summer, so check the athletics website often for information.  Students must be enrolled at WHS and complete their Athletic Clearance before trying out.

Students who are members of a team will be scheduled to their sport as a PE class.  In order for counselors to schedule a student to a sport, the student's name must be included on the team roster submitted to them by the coach (see "Joining a Team" for information on being included on a roster).  Attendance is taken and grades are given for sport classes.  Students will receive a PE or elective credit if they remain in a sport for an entire semester (may change sports during the semester).  Students wanting to add, drop, or change sports after the beginning of the school year must submit an Athletic Schedule Change Request form to the Athletics Department.

Multi-Sport student-athletes will be scheduled to their sports in the order in which those sports compete during the school year.  For example, a student participates in Football (fall sport), Basketball (winter sport), and Track (spring sport).  The student will be scheduled to Football at the beginning of the year.  At the conclusion of the Football season, they would submit a schedule change request to drop Football and add Basketball.  At the conclusion of the Basketball season, they would submit a schedule change request to drop Basketball and add Track.

Students will be scheduled to their sport as a 6th period class. However, due to limited facilities, practices may actually take place at different times outside of school hours, and/or at off-campus facilities.  Practice times/locations will be communicated to students/parents directly by the coach.  In most cases, transportation is not provided for off-campus practices. 

In addition to practices, student-athletes will be required to attend games during the CIF competitive season for their sport.  These games and other competitive events may take place on the WHS campus or at other schools/venues which may require significant travel.  This could include out-of-state and/or overnight travel.  In many cases, attendance at these games/competitions will require the student to be dismissed early from school or to miss school altogether.  These early dismissals/absences will be excused, and the student will be allowed to make-up any missed work.  

The district will provide transportation to all athletic competitions unless it is unavailable or not needed.  When transportation is provided by the district, students are required to travel with their team to and from competitions. In the case of extenuating circumstance where the student cannot ride with the team, the Student Transportation Permission Form must be submitted to the AP of Athletics for approval.  The form must be filled out, signed by a parent, signed by the coach, and then submitted to the Athletics Department at least 24 hours in advance of the event.  Email forms to chenderson@conejousd.org 

Transportation Donations:  In order to preserve safety and team camaraderie, CVUSD students are required to travel on buses, vans, or other transportation provided by the District to designated school sponsored activities, practices, and/or games/events. Your continued support in this effort is very much appreciated. In order to continue to deliver this valuable service to all participating students, we ask that you contribute in the following manner:

         $ 125.00     First Sport/Activity                      Individual maximum contribution:  $250.00

     $ 75.00     Second Sport/Activity                 Family maximum contribution:  $500.00

           $ 50.00     Third Sport/Activity          

Payments can be made at the Student Store on campus or online at www.conejousd.org/whs.  Please note the students name and sport on checks (make out to WHS).

*No student will be excluded from participation due to an inability to contribute financially.* 

Most sports offer an off-season program in which practices and conditioning are offered to student-athletes before and/or after the sport's competitive season.  Students earn PE/elective credit by participating in a sport's off-season program (summer programs are not considered off-season, and students will not earn credits for summer participation).  Participation in off-season programs requires commitment to participate in the sport's upcoming competive season.

Most coaches at WHS are not teachers and do not work full-time on our campus.  They are "walk-on" coaches and are usually only on campus for practices and games.  Though they are not certified teachers, they have completed extensive training in coaching principals and techniques, first aid and safety, and have passed a federal background check.  All walk-on coaches have been cleared by CVUSD human resources and are CIF certified.

Participation certificates are awarded at all levels of a sport.  Letter Certificates are awarded to Varsity athletes.  To receive a Letter Certificate, an athlete must participate in at least one Varsity Marmonte League contest, and the student-athlete must remain on the team through the conclusion of the season.  Specific sports may have a variation of this general policy.  Letter awards are based on participation and will not be withheld for disciplinary reasons unless specified by the Assistant Principal of Athletics.  Letters and jackets may be purchased in the student store upon presentation of the Varsity Letter certificate by the recipient.  Other awards may be given by individual sports as they see fit.

Funds collected through the following programs are used to offset the cost of team transportation and to supplement funding for individual sports/activities so that our athletes may have the best opportunities possible.

Associated Student Body (ASB) Cards:   All Westlake High School students participating in athletics (sports) or activities (band, tall flags, choir, cheerleading and dance) are encouraged to purchase ASB cards.  The cost for an ASB Card was $65.00 for the 2023-24 school year.  ASB cardholders have free admission to all WHS athletic events - a substantial savings.  In addition, students with ASB cards get many discounts, including reduced prices for dances and the yearbook. 

Transportation Donations:  In order to preserve safety and team camaraderie, CVUSD students are required to travel on buses, vans, or other transportation provided by the District to designated school sponsored activities, practices, and/or games/events. Your continued support in this effort is very much appreciated. In order to continue to deliver this valuable service to all participating students, we ask that you contribute in the following manner:

         $ 125.00     First Sport/Activity                      Individual maximum contribution:  $250.00

     $ 75.00     Second Sport/Activity                 Family maximum contribution:  $500.00

           $ 50.00     Third Sport/Activity          

Payments can be made at the Student Store on campus or online at www.conejousd.org/whs.  Please note the students name and sport on checks (make out to WHS).

*No student will be excluded from participation due to an inability to contribute financially.*