MN Dance Information

Dance teams registered with the Minnesota State High School League are governed through the Official Bylaws for Dance Team which includes rules regarding: daily and seasonal player participation limitations, contest rules, last dates to join a team, practice sessions before first contest, season dates, tryout restrictions and eligibility rules.
MSHSL sponsors three Classes of competition – A, AA and AAA – in two Divisons – High Kick and Jazz. Classes are determined by enrollment numbers, splitting the total number of teams into their divisions.
There are four Section Tournaments for each class, passing the top three teams on to the State Tournament. Those 12 teams compete for one of six spots for the Final Round of competition. The top three teams are announced and presented medals for their efforts.
Teams participating in the Section Tournaments must register in December each year for the division(s) they will compete in. Registration information is used to balance the number of teams advancing to the State Tournament. Team who register for Sections must schedule a minimum of three games, meets or matches to qualify for League sponsored tournaments.
Official squad size – maximum for High Kick = 34, maximum for Jazz = 26; the minimum number of competitors required = 5.
There are specific time min/max for each division: High Kick routines – 2:15 to 2:45 in length; Jazz routines – 2:00 to 2:30 in length. There are penalties for going over or under in length. Each division also has required routine elements: High Kick routines must contain 35-60 kicks at waist or higher; Jazz routines must contain one turn, one leap and one jump. There are also moves that are banned from competition – to see a complete list, check the MSHSL Rules Manual.
There are specific uniform requirements for high school dance teams. Additional information is available on the MSHSL web site.
Scoring errors must be brought to the Meet Director within one hour from the time the result packets are released to the coaches.
MSHSL rules prohibit registered teams from competing nationally. (Some schools field two separate teams – one competes nationally, one competes locally – they cannot share team members.)