Archery in Mississippi Schools

About AIMS

Archery in Mississippi Schools (AIMS) is designed to introduce 4th-12th grade students to the sport of International-Style Target Archery during their Physical Education Class ( a 10-hour in-school per year requirement) and as an extracurricular team sport. The Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries, and Parks (MDWFP) is the driving force behind AIMS. The program, which began in 2006 with 10 schools, is now over 400 schools and in over 50 counties. The growth of AIMS has followed the national trend of Archery being the fastest-growing sport nationwide and statewide. The first statewide Archery Invitational was held in Mississippi in 2011 with 400 student archers competing; and that number has expanded to over 6,000 student archers competing annually in the AIMS State Championship Series.

AIMS Staff

Archery in Mississippi Schools, Xtreme & Outdoor

Craig Beeding , MSNASP®️State Coordinator
Archery in Mississippi Schools
aimssouth@yahoo.com

Steve Smith, AIMS Assistant Coordinator
Xtreme & Outdoor
dsouthfishing@gmail.com

Jason Johnson, AIMS Rules Arbitrator/Event Floor Coordinator
aimsrules@yahoo.com

John McDonald, AIMS Tournament Registration/Communications
jmcdonaldjr@yahoo.com

Trey Humphreys, AIMS North
treyhumphreys@yahoo.com

John Baker, AIMS Central
jbaker@stjoeirish.org

AIMS X-Treme

X-TREME is a new division for AIMS schools that will allow archers to use bows with set draw lengths, release aids, and sights. This will enable our high school archers (Grades 9 through 12) to be formally trained to use equipment that will benefit them at the next level (Collegiate Archery) enabling these archers to bow hunt and shoot in adult archery events or even professionally.

AIMS X-TREME uses the new Gen-X bow with a 40 pound peak weight and is equipped with an adjustable sight, tunable arrow rest, peep sight, stabilizer, string loop, and a comfortable caliper style release aid.

Xtreme Bow — **The new AIMS EXTREME bow pictured above is loaded out with great terminal gear that is at home on the range or in the woods**.

In capable hands, this rig is sufficient to take down a whitetail deer. This division will also introduce a new challenge for high school-aged student-athletes. The AIMS X-TREME program differs not only in the equipment from AIMS but also in the targets, which are durable animal-style target faces that are easily stored and transported, simplifying range setup for instructors and students. These targets fit easily on standard AIMS target bags, making the X-TREME program affordable for every school.

Targets — **This is two of the six target faces used in AIMS X-TREME competition.**

The format for X-TREME will follow the standard AIMS format: one practice end of five arrows for practice, followed by three scoring ends at 10 meters. Student-athletes will move to 15 meters and repeat the process with one practice end followed by three scoring ends. A perfect score of 300 is possible, and ties will be broken by the AIMS X-TREME protocol.

All competitors will use the same model and style of equipment. The picture below shows the equipment that is allowed for competition. Easton Genesis arrows are the required arrows, fletched with 3-inch straight vanes. The arrows must be full-length with glue-in points installed. Floor quivers are the only style of quiver allowed.

For more information:

Steve Smith/AIMS Assistant Coordinator
dsouthfishing@gmail.com

AIMS Outdoor

AIMS Outdoor is a 3D Outdoor Archery Program with competitions held in the Fall of the year in both North and South regions of the State.

For more information:

Steve Smith/AIMS Assistant Coordinator
dsouthfishing@gmail.com

AIMS/Basic Archery Instructor (BAI) Certification

NASP® In-school lessons must be taught by a NASP® certified Basic Archery Instructor (for a minimum of 10 hours) during the school year, as a part of the in-school curriculum. Lessons taught outside of the normal school day or not in a class do not count as in school lessons and are considered after-school Sports or Activities. In addition to strengthening our perfect safety record, the NASP® in school requirement encourages schools to become a part of NASP®, enabling the safe introduction of archery for a greater number of students. The most common current delivery of the in-school NASP® lessons are provided in physical education classes; however, this is a local decision regarding where the lessons are provided. In-school lessons should include students that are not part of a secondary after-school program. In most cases the number of students attending in-school lessons would be greater than the numbers for the after-school group. Annual online reporting of in-school instructional hours and the number of students involved is mandatory for each NASP® school. Reporting is to be completed by the in school BAI instructor(s) that presented/taught the in-school lessons at each NASP® school and is required to maintain an active BAI certification and is required for that schools’ eligibility for Post Season play (The AIMS State Championship Series).

This eight-hour training program equips P.E. teachers and school personnel with the skills needed to become certified archery instructors.

Eligibility and Training:

Candidates must be at least 18 years old.
Completion of the AIMS Instructor Program is required.
Candidates need to pass the practical assessment and score a minimum of 80% on the written exam.

Maintenance of Certification:

Instructors are required to teach at least one course annually or retake the certification course to remain certified.
Annual reports must be submitted via www.naspbai.org.

Recommendations:

It is advisable to have at least two certified instructors per program to ensure ongoing quality and continuity.

Tournament Registration

Mississippi AIMS staff coordinates archery regional and state events throughout the competitive season for public and independent school systems. The State Championships will be held in Jackson MS in April.