TSSAA meeting-Classification

[bigchief]

Well, actually I'm pretty sure I'm right...but I admit I could be wrong.

 

In Maury as well as any other county if student A is zoned for school A but wishes to take a class only offered at school B then NCLB supercedes ALL zoning rules and requires that that child not only be allowed to attend school B but also be provided transport there if needed.

 

So unless all 3 schools in Maury offer exactly the same classes, any Maury student can go to any school by simply saying they wish to take a class that that school offers that isn't offered at their current school. And that is just another way of saying that anyone can go anywhere if they want to.

 

Further, almost all counties will allow students to attend a county school other than the one closest to their house if the school they want to attend is not overcrowded, even if they SAY they have a zoned policy. That way they avoid the "My parents moved to a bigger house down the road my junior year and you are making me switch to the school I hate" headache and you mitigate some of the uneven population problems that occur if part of the county is near a major interstate/highway while the rest isn't. Since I-65 runs right through (by?) Maury County, I'm guessing that their policy is the same. But regardless of whether this is true for Maury, NCLB is Federal legislation and non-negotiable if the school system wants Federal funding.

 

You are right about some things regarding NCLB, but wrong on others. A student can choose to attend another school only if the one they are currently attending is on the watch and/or failing lists. We received over 30 students this fall after school began from other failing schools in Nashville (ie. Stratford, Maplewood and others). These children are NOT provided transportation, however. They have to get their own way to school. The TSSAA has also ruled them ineligible due to not changing addresses. Also, you cannot change schools just to take any old class that is not offered at your school under the NCLB rules. It must be under the general core (English, Math, Science, Social Studies etc.) All schools must offer these. Electives do not fall under this directive (ie vocational, ROTC, Ag. etc.) Now a county can allow this type transfer if they want to, but it is not mandated under NCLB. Also, if you do this, you better do it before you establish your record of participation with the TSSAA. I am waiting for one law suit that challenges the TSSAA on ruling a NCLB transfer ineligible. It is only going to take one. The BA/TSSAA mess will be chicken feed compared to that one.

[Gov]

Ok, this is how it works. NCLB is a federal mandate handed down to the states. It is up to the individual states to determine their particular benchmarks and value added scores. Each state varies in these benchmarks and value added scores. As far as NCLB affecting athletics in this state, If a school is not meeting these benchmarks and is determined to be a low performing school, any athlete-Student may be able to transfer to a higher performing school without losing eligibility, EX> Sweetwater High School students who transfered to another school or system in their county. In this case, I believe the school may have been taken over by the state. As far as classes offered at one school and not the other, this is a loophole in the system. Counties differ along with the TSSAA in each individual case. Each system can handle it different in each case. A system may co-op with a school in there system, ex> McMinn co-ops vocational students, Central students are bused to McMinn Co campus to take certain Classes. In a large metro area like Nashville, students can attend out of zone schools that offer a certain class like Japaneese that may only be offered at certain schools, if approved by the system. Most examples that are out there depends mostly on whether a student is gifted or learning disabled. It is a very complicated issue that TSSAA and School Systems have to deal with on an individual basis. One shoe doesn't fit all. I agree big chief, If a student transfer's under the NCLB I can't see the TSSAA ruling against the transfer. That lawsuit would be very costly to the TSSAA.

[Baldcoach]

Ok,

 

Learned quite a bit about NCLB details I did not know. Correct me if I am wrong, but what I gather about the totality is that NCLB DOES provide a way for kids to get from one school to another, at least in some cases, even if that county has a 'no out of zone' rule.

 

Most metro systems that I know of will let students move between schools in certain circumstances.

 

Note that these moves may or may not affect athletic eligibility...but they certainly allow kids to move to better athletic alternatives if that is what they are trying to do, especially when the student first leaves middle school to enter high school.

 

My point all along has been that while the small privates have a financially limited zone...there are only so many families that can afford tuition and are willing to pay it in lieu(sp?) of a free public education...most publics have at least limited access to kids outside their geographic zone. Whether those potential students are at another school in the county or in another metro school, there are ways to move to out of zone schools, especially when going from Middle to High schools.

 

Our JV played a local public school in Basketball the other day. Their star player lives on the other side of town. Amazingly, somehow this year he is able to attend the school he is at. The school he is zoned for is very average in Football and Basketball...his two main sports. The school he attends is a 4a powerhouse.

 

The overall point is that the mythical 'private advantage' of a larger pool of athletes is all smoke and mirrors. Perhaps if the small privates could offer financial aid and thereby get over the income barrier the argument would hold water, but because they can't, and couldn't afford it even if they could, there just isn't a large pool of athletes out there for them...in fact, fewer than are available to the good public schools of the same size.

[Gov]

Baldcoach, the publics would like for you to believe that there are no out of zone rules, this is a myth that doesn't exist. Its like the zero tolerance rule, its there to use at the Director of schools discretion, but it is not mandatory, but may be involked at any time. Most systems try to use it to deter out of zone students moving from one school to another, but in reality students can transfer to any school if approved by the director of schools. If a student is gifted and wants to take Japaneese at Hillsboro HS and thats the only school that offers it, if the student provides his own transportation he can go, if that is what his IEP calls for. Its all about IEP if you are gifted or learning disabled. The Disabilities Act supersedes all local, state, or TSSAA rules, kinda like Title IX. Its not so much NCLB, although as was mentioned earlier, it will have the same effect as Title IX and the Disabilities Act.

[PBandJ]

This article isn't really specific to TN sports, but it shows that this issue is not unique to us. Ryan Mallett, Mr. All World QB from 2 years ago and recent transfer from Michigan to Arkansas, lived in Arkansas but attended school in Texas.

 

http://sports.espn.go.com/ncf/news/story?id=3232753

[LSMFT]

I have no clue about all of this rural/urban BS that the T$$AA is trying to pass around. I would naturally guess that by going with an urban school championship means that AUSTIN EAST would have a better chance to win the state GOLF championship than they would have if no changes were made.