Can private school students try out for public school athletics?

I couldn't find much on the internet so I am just trying to get some basic info. Can private school students try out for public school athletis? Does each school district set their own quidelines?
If so, does anyone have any first hand experience with the process?

Just curious...

Depends on the state law. Florida passed "The Tebow Rule" that allowed the home schooled superstar athlete to play in a public school. Texas has no such analogous law/rule. Yet. Got any connections in Austin?

Yes..., but Texas also has no law or rules specifically forbidding it. At least 7 or 8 years ago they didn't. But... ADs and the UIL will tell you it is not allowed. The ADs have the authority to do so and choose to not go through the difficult task of verifying academic eligibility ( accredited course program, verifiable grades, standardized test scores.) The UIL will just tell you no, it is not allowed, which is a lie. It is (or was) not in their bylaws or rules anywhere. I researched them for homeschool which under law in Texas is considered private school. I know a coach who had homeschoolers on a public school soccer team in Houston about 10 years ago. He is up here now and told me back then he would love to have my homeschooled sons play but his AD would not allow it.

Texas has UIL (public) and TAPPS (private) leagues. Jesuit used to play in TAPPS, then switched over to UIL. I know there is a "home school" team in TAPPS that is an organization of home school students that have put together teams. I know that players on TAPPS teams get scouted the same if not more than UIL teams, due to the fact that most private schools are "college preparatory" schools, so the assumption is that the student is more prepared for college than the ordinary public school student...(notice I said assumption). Also, there are a significant number of club players in TAPPS due to the affluence factor, and that also coincides with the assumption of the ability of the parents to pay for college due to limited scholarships (on the boys side).

10sDad wrote:Texas has UIL (public) and TAPPS (private) leagues. Jesuit used to play in TAPPS, then switched over to UIL. I know there is a "home school" team in TAPPS that is an organization of home school students that have put together teams. I know that players on TAPPS teams get scouted the same if not more than UIL teams, due to the fact that most private schools are "college preparatory" schools, so the assumption is that the student is more prepared for college than the ordinary public school student...(notice I said assumption). Also, there are a significant number of club players in TAPPS due to the affluence factor, and that also coincides with the assumption of the ability of the parents to pay for college due to limited scholarships (on the boys side).

If you are referring to HSAA,(just to clarify) They aren't officially part of any league/organization, they schedule whomever will play them. Typically, they play private schools until Christmas, and public afterward. And as of now in soccer, they have Girls Varsity & JV, Boys Varsity & JV, and Boys & Girls middle school. They also have a number of teams in other sports as well, including pointy ball.

http://www.hsaa.org/

this takes you to the front page, scroll down the left side to see info & schedules

JeffM wrote:

10sDad wrote:Texas has UIL (public) and TAPPS (private) leagues. Jesuit used to play in TAPPS, then switched over to UIL. I know there is a "home school" team in TAPPS that is an organization of home school students that have put together teams. I know that players on TAPPS teams get scouted the same if not more than UIL teams, due to the fact that most private schools are "college preparatory" schools, so the assumption is that the student is more prepared for college than the ordinary public school student...(notice I said assumption). Also, there are a significant number of club players in TAPPS due to the affluence factor, and that also coincides with the assumption of the ability of the parents to pay for college due to limited scholarships (on the boys side).

If you are referring to HSAA,(just to clarify) They aren't officially part of any league/organization, they schedule whomever will play them. Typically, they play private schools until Christmas, and public afterward. And as of now in soccer, they have Girls Varsity & JV, Boys Varsity & JV, and Boys & Girls middle school. They also have a number of teams in other sports as well, including pointy ball.

http://www.hsaa.org/

this takes you to the front page, schroll down the left side to see info & schedules

Cool! Their organization is coming together nicely! good to see. I always thought athletics and after-school activities was a huge detriment to home schooling. Glad to see progress in that area.

The varsity girls home school team is pretty good they have some good players on their team. I refereed them a few weeks ago at a tournament. I would like to see them against some of the decent hs teams because the game i watched they were a lot better then the team they played. They defiantly have some club players on their team.

ekkeeper1 wrote:The varsity girls home school team is pretty good they have some good players on their team. I refereed them a few weeks ago at a tournament. I would like to see them against some of the decent hs teams because the game i watched they were a lot better then the team they played. They defiantly have some club players on their team.

On the site, they are permanent national champions in the home school soccer world. Way to represent North Texas soccer!

I believe you have to be enrolled in the school to participate in athletics. But I can be wrong..

I would think with the transfer and recruiting rules it would be hard to do

Public schools are bounded to students within the borders of their districts. Private schools through TAPPS have transfer dates set for fall, winter, and spring sports. As long as you are enrolled as a full time student before these transfer dates you are eligible to play a sport in TAPPS.

Thanks for all the responses. I am reading each one and trying to make sense of it all.

My daughter attends a private school but we are zoned for Hebron HS. I would think that since that is my "designated school" and I pay into the school taxe base, she should at least be given a chance to try out for a sports teams, though at best, I'll bet it's highly discouraged from the school district and would be a nightmare getting a clear cut answer. We have a few years yet but I was just wondering how that might work.

TXSoccerMom2202 wrote:Thanks for all the responses. I am reading each one and trying to make sense of it all.

My daughter attends a private school but we are zoned for Hebron HS. I would think that since that is my "designated school" and I pay into the school taxe base, she should at least be given a chance to try out for a sports teams, though at best, I'll bet it's highly discouraged from the school district and would be a nightmare getting a clear cut answer. We have a few years yet but I was just wondering how that might work.

I would guess that UIL has a rule stating she must be a full time student to participate. What private does she attend? Move her to a private that plays winter soccer. There are many good private school female teams to choose from. ie Prestonwood Baptist, Carrollton Christian

totalsoccer wrote:

TXSoccerMom2202 wrote:Thanks for all the responses. I am reading each one and trying to make sense of it all.

My daughter attends a private school but we are zoned for Hebron HS. I would think that since that is my "designated school" and I pay into the school taxe base, she should at least be given a chance to try out for a sports teams, though at best, I'll bet it's highly discouraged from the school district and would be a nightmare getting a clear cut answer. We have a few years yet but I was just wondering how that might work.

I would guess that UIL has a rule stating she must be a full time student to participate. What private does she attend? Move her to a private that plays winter soccer. There are many good private school female teams to choose from. ie Prestonwood Baptist, Carrollton Christian

There may also be an option of paying a participation fee to another private school to play there, especially if your school does not have a team. My daughter (now 20) was in a private school orchestra when we were homeschooling her. They allowed her to pay a fee, for that class only. That may be an option as well, you would have to contact the private school you are interested in to be sure.

ekkeeper1 wrote:The varsity girls home school team is pretty good they have some good players on their team. I refereed them a few weeks ago at a tournament. I would like to see them against some of the decent hs teams because the game i watched they were a lot better then the team they played. They defiantly have some club players on their team.

Some years they are quite decent...but not this past season. I watched them get blasted by Hockaday (8-3 IIRC) and Greenhill (4-0)....by the way, why no mention of SPC private schools ?....the main ones, Hockaday, ESD, Greenhill and Ft Worth Country Day would beat (and do regularly) most TAPPS schools...for example...ESD and Greenhill combined went 6 and 0 vs TAPPS schools this past season...

santos.l.halper wrote:

ekkeeper1 wrote:The varsity girls home school team is pretty good they have some good players on their team. I refereed them a few weeks ago at a tournament. I would like to see them against some of the decent hs teams because the game i watched they were a lot better then the team they played. They defiantly have some club players on their team.

On the site, they are permanent national champions in the home school soccer world. Way to represent North Texas soccer!

...like being the one eyed man in the land of the blind methinks...

tornado11 wrote:

santos.l.halper wrote:

ekkeeper1 wrote:The varsity girls home school team is pretty good they have some good players on their team. I refereed them a few weeks ago at a tournament. I would like to see them against some of the decent hs teams because the game i watched they were a lot better then the team they played. They defiantly have some club players on their team.

On the site, they are permanent national champions in the home school soccer world. Way to represent North Texas soccer!

...like being the one eyed man in the land of the blind methinks...

Maybe not so much anymore. came in 2nd this year. Team from STX won it. Took two OTs, and 13 PKs though.

No they cant. Private school students must play for their private schools sports teams

I know home school students will soon be able to play with their local public schools via the pending tebow homeschool law.

Blank77 wrote:I know home school students will soon be able to play with their local public schools via the pending tebow homeschool law.

It looks like the Tebow bill is dying in committee this session, so nothing will change, at least for now.