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WIAA: JFC Provision Could Negatively Impact Districts, Students
By Wisconsin School Administrators Alliance staff | May 21, 2015
From WisPolitics . . .
Dave Anderson, executive director of the WIAA, said allowing students who live in a district but don’t attend a public school there to participate in sports could affect some of his members that already are struggling financially.
JFC’s education motion includes a provision requiring school boards permit those who are home-schooled or in a private, charter or virtual school to play sports and participate in extracurricular activities if they live in the district.
Anderson said the WIAA was formed 120 years ago over concerns some schools were using non-students on their athletic teams. He hadn’t had a chance to poll his members yet but expected many to lobby against inclusion of the change in the final budget.
He said small schools traditionally have been concerned that opening the door to non-students playing sports would accelerate loss of enrollment and, consequently, state aid. Playing sports for some students is what keeps them in public schools vs. turning to virtual schools or being home schooled, he said.
His members have also generally expressed concern that students who attend public schools would be displaced on teams by those who are not part of the school’s daily life.
“We view sports activities as truly an extension of the classroom and extension of the school day,” he said. “It’s not just something that we throw out in sound bites. It’s the basis of our reason to exist.”
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