AUSTIN — Texas is poised to let home-schooled students compete in public school sports and other extracurricular activities, after the Senate advanced the proposal in one of its closest votes this session.
The bill passed 16-14 on Saturday and now goes back to the House, where representatives can accept the Senate’s changes or convene a conference committee to hash out differences.
Sen. Angela Paxton, R-McKinney, said the legislation would ensure that home-schoolers who live within the community and whose families pay taxes have the option to participate.
“This opportunity helps all kids learn, grow and develop their gifts,” she said.
Under the legislation, school districts and charter schools would have discretion to let home-schooled students participate in University Interscholastic League activities, such as sports, debate, theater and band.
The move is gaining unprecedented momentum this year despite opposition from the state’s largest coaches associations and education advocacy groups.
Several senators from both sides of the aisle raised concerns on Saturday. They worried that student athletes could game the system by dropping out of public school to train all day.
“If I didn’t have to be in school and I could be taking my lessons with my pro in the morning and then do my classes whenever I want to do them and I get to play for the school, there could potentially be some incentive for me to drop out of school and just be a home-schooler because I can be better at my sport if I spend more hours playing it,” said Sen. Lois Kolkhorst, R-Brehnam.
Similarly, Sen. José Menéndez, D-San Antonio, said he worried that star athletes on the brink of failing their classes could drop out of public school, begin home schooling and keep playing for their teams to skirt the “no pass, no play” rule.
“I am worried we may be opening a huge can of worms,” he said.
Paxton, however, said the bill has safeguards in place to prevent against that, such as having home-schoolers pass grade-level testing each year. A student who leaves public school mid-semester couldn’t continue participating in the school’s extracurricular activities for the rest of the year.
“This is working so well in 36 other states. I look forward to Texas being one,” she said.
If the bill, which is being called the Tim Tebow Bill after the Jacksonville Jaguars tight end who played in public schools as a home-schooler in Florida, becomes law, the changes would be in effect for the next school year.
Some lawmakers who voted for the bill said the state needs to closely monitor the rollout to make sure there are no unintended consequences.
“As always, someone’s thinking of how to beat it, how to beat the system,” said Sen. Eddie Lucio Jr., D-Brownsville. “I want all of us to keep an eye on how this develops and how it works out.”
The 2021 legislative session ends May 31.
*story by Dallas Morning News
(*) WhitePrideHomeSchool.com