NCHSAA charter and private schools could face big changes for sports if new bill passes
A new bill in the N.C. General Assembly could create big changes for N.C. charter and non-public schools currently playing sports in the N.C. High School Athletic Association.
NC lawmakers argued that charter and private schools in the N.C. High School Athletic Association have unfair athletic advantages over traditional schools that have smaller geographic boundaries. House Bill 219 is set to address that. These changes would be effective for the 2023-24 school year if the bill is passed and becomes law.
Among its proposals, the bill would:
▪ Require charter or non-public schools to give the State Board of Education the names of the traditional schools to which all of its students would have been assigned, as well as the percentage of those students who would’ve attended each of those traditional schools.
▪ Require charter or non-publics to play in a classification based on the school or schools that the largest percentage of the student body would’ve been assigned. So if the majority of a charter school’s students would’ve been assigned to 4A Myers Park, that school would be play in the 4A division.
▪ The bill also allows for a hardship waiver.
Rep. John Bell, a Wayne County Republican, said the change is needed to bring fairness and parity in high school athletics. He said that charter schools that have enrollment caps who are drawing students statewide or over a large area have an advantage over traditional public schools.
“You’ve seen an eroding of 1A and 2A athletic programs where the charter schools have completely come in and dominated those athletic events,” Bell said.
The wording about athletic participation was added Tuesday to charter school legislation that was approved by the N.C. House K-12 Education Committee. The full House could approve the legislation this week, which would send it to the Senate for its consideration.
Read The Entire Bill
This story was originally published May 2, 2023 at 2:15 PM with the headline "NCHSAA charter and private schools could face big changes for sports if new bill passes."
