Alaska News

Our view: Sports eligibility rule needs change

When school officials discovered that one of the players on the Chugiak High School football team was ineligible, they followed the rules. Chugiak had to forfeit three of its victories because the ineligible player had participated in those games.

The Mustangs saw their playoff chances vanish and three hard-earned wins stricken from the books. The player suddenly found himself without a team and, though not identified, front and center in the controversial business.

Pretty tough penalty. And nobody involved was happy about it. That's understandable, because the rule in this case served neither fairness nor education. Chugiak High is appealing the decision with the backing of the Anchorage School Board. One thing is sure -- this rule needs to change.

The player was home-schooled through the IDEA program, a statewide home-school system operated by the Galena School District. All of the students enrolled (more than 3,000) are considered enrollees in the Galena district, no matter where they live.

Anchorage School District rules require that a student be enrolled in the district in order to participate in team sports in the district. The Galena district tells prospective IDEA enrollees that if they want to play team high school sports, they shouldn't enroll in the IDEA program.

Home-schoolers can participate in a district's individual sporting events -- skiing and swimming, for example, but as individuals, not as members of a team.

What's wrong with this? Simple. It limits a student's choices, for no good reason. If a home-school student wants to play football, baseball or basketball with his local high school team, he or she should be allowed to do so. They should have to reside in the enrollment area -- no cherry-picking either athletes or school teams -- meet grade requirements and cover activity fees. But if students do all that and make the cut, suit them up and let learning continue on the field of play.

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The purpose is to offer young Alaskans the best education we can -- and that includes the range of lessons in team sports. You could argue that school teams are something that families give up when they choose home schooling. That's a narrow view that can deprive a team of a good neighborhood athlete, and deprive a student of a great experience.

There apparently was no deceit here, just a mistake. But a home-school player on a high school team shouldn't be a mistake. It should be an opportunity.

BOTTOM LINE: Home-school sports rule needs to change.

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