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SALT LAKE CITY — The Utah State Board of Education nixed a proposal Friday that would have allowed high school students to transfer schools without losing athletic eligibility.
The proposal was stripped out of a motion that puts forward a list of requirements that the Utah High School Activities Association and other groups would need to fulfill in order for schools to be members.
The change comes a day after representatives of the athletic body, as well as their supporters, argued before the State School Board's Standards and Assessment Committee that such a stance toward transfers would harm high school athletic programs, as well as competitive balance in the state.
The committee was split on the proposed changes, 2-2, after a three-hour public comment session, and sent them to the full board for consideration without a formal recommendation on whether to keep them.
"I’m receptive to (those) public comment(s), especially for my own constituents … in regards to transfers and eligibility," David Thomas, board vice chairman, said Friday.
The adjustment was made after some board members conferred further with UHSAA representatives before Friday's meeting, according to board member Spencer Stokes. State education officials previously expressed concern about how athletic eligibility restrictions might contradict with the state's open enrollment policies.
UHSAA Executive Director Rob Cuff thanked the school board for nixing the language in the proposal affecting athletic eligibility.
“That was a great conversation” that allowed that to happen, Cuff told Stokes.
The considerably reduced motion, presented by Thomas, passed a first reading after about 45 minutes of discussion over whether to postpone the vote. It will need to pass second and third readings, and potentially undergo another approving vote by the Utah State Board of Education, depending on the amount of public comment, before taking effect in time to apply to the 2017-18 school year.
The revised proposal would formally require the UHSAA to establish policies in compliance with student privacy laws and to train coaches and other administrators in child sexual abuse, bullying and hazing prevention.
It also would prohibit public schools from belonging to any organization that doesn't meet those requirements. Qualifying organizations would have the authority to discipline coaches or others who engage in recruiting or otherwise violate the group's bylaws, under the proposal.
The Utah State Board of Education would also be given the authority to audit the finances of those organizations.
Disagreement lingered Friday over precisely how much and how urgently the UHSAA needs oversight from the State School Board. Some hard feelings also remained over the tone of public opposition to the proposed transfer and eligibility changes.
"I did feel like I was bullied — and this is the same group that’s teaching sportsmanship to our students," Stokes said, referring to supporters of the UHSAA at Thursday's meeting.
Stokes' comment prompted some loud grumbling from members of the public attending the meeting. He was responding to board member Mark Hunstman, who favored waiting until Oct. 6-7, when the board meets again, to vote on the rules and requirements.
"It's a very aggressive (proposal) in my opinion," Huntsman said, adding that rushing through the remaining requirements on UHSAA too fast makes the Utah State Board of Education come across as "a little bit of a bully."
Local high school football coaches didn't like it, either.
"I spoke to a lot of coaches; we are definitely against it," Alta coach Alema Te'o told KSL Sports. "It's going to disrupt a lot of stuff.
"We've all been victims and we've all been recipients of this deal. Nobody is really clean in all this stuff."
Te'o hopes the additional referenda also consult coaches and educators before passing finalist on the subject.
"I think the coaches in the state of Utah need to have a voice, and we should," he said. "We are right there in the trenches with these guys, and we should be able to offer our input into what goes on here.
"I believe we've got great coaches in this state, smart coaches, and we are going to make the best decisions for these kids."
Cuff told the board that UHSAA executives need to meet together to discuss their stance on the other parts of the overall proposal and asked the board to postpone voting.
“We feel like we need some time to evaluate the language,” he said.
Cuff added that the UHSAA could identify the issues it wants to address within 30 days, though the organization would possibly need to hold an emergency meeting to meet that timeline.
Thomas, who supported passing the amended rule change Thursday, asked the other board members "what's left that would be offensive" to the UHSAA's goals in light of the eligibility and transfer issues being taken off the table.
Board member Barbara Corry said she wanted the UHSAA to have a chance to propose self-imposed requirements to the State School Board and further state its case.
"This is quite a shift in my mind as far as who's in charge of athletics. … Let them bring solutions to us rather than imposing solutions on them," Corry said. "Let's give them a deadline, but let's give them a chance."
The motion to postpone the decision failed.
Contributing: Sean Walker, Jeremiah Jensen
