The window for high schools to vote whether their students should be allowed to be compensated for name, image and likeness deals ends on Friday.
This week's emergency vote on NIL was prompted by a lawsuit filed in October by the parent of Dayton-area football player Jamier Brown, who has verbally committed to Ohio State University.
Ohio High School Athletic Association's 815 member schools will each cast one vote via their principal.
Sixteen of Columbus City Schools' high schools are OHSAA members. Each principal will vote independently of the others, according to Vincent Clarino, CCS' director of students activities.
Clarino works closely with OSHAA. He said he shared information about the proposed NIL regulations with the principals, but he doesn't know how they plan to vote.
"This is a new tool, if passed, that school districts and student athletes and communities will have to figure out," Clarino said.
Clarino does not get a vote, but said he takes a fairly neutral stance on NIL. He said it would come with both benefits and challenges.
NIL would be a potentially profitable business opportunity for families with talented student athletes, but Clarino worries some people may try to take advantage of families.
OSHAA's proposed bylaws include protections for student athletes.
High school athletes still would not be allowed to enter a contract with professional sports teams or get paid for playing. NIL also wouldn't be allowed to be used as an incentive for a student to attend a certain school.
Students would not take part in NIL activities during school hours or at practices, games or team events. The bylaws would also prohibit students from being compensated based on specific athletic performance.
"If used the appropriate way to help student athletes or students in general, just in any growth area, I think [it] is overall a good thing," Clarino said.
OHSAA said in a statement that if members vote in favor of NIL, they will get a say in how it impacts students.
"If schools do not vote in favor of the referendum, the lawsuit and the future of NIL in Ohio will be determined by the court," the OSHAA statement reads.
In 2022, OSHAA member schools shot down an NIL proposal by a margin of two-to-one.
Ohio is one of just six states that does not allow high school students to participate in NIL deals.
However, high school students can temporarily benefit from NIL deals due to a 45-day restraining order from a Franklin County judge.
