The Rise Of “Tim Tebow Bills” In High School Football
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The impact of Tim Tebow extends beyond the football field and Skip Bayless. The former Florida quarterback is now the poster child for a movement to adopt “Tebow Bills” that would require public high schools to allow home-schooled students, like Tebow was, to participate on athletic teams. On Wednesday, the Virginia House of Delegates approved a Tebow Bill that, if passed by the state senate, will likely be signed into law by Gov. Robert McDonnell.
A Florida law known as the Craig Dickinson Act enabled a home-schooled Tebow to play football at Allen D. Nease High School in Ponte Verda. Tebow’s college and NFL success helped spawn efforts to adopt similar acts in over a dozen states. The legislatures in Alabama and Arkansas have considered similar bills. Supporters of the Alabama bill even have a website, timtebowbill.com, authorized by the quarterback himself.
In Virginia, the Tebow Bill had been introduced in several prior legislative sessions, but after 2011 local elections in which Republicans gained control of both houses of the General Assembly, the measure now called HB 947 passed the House with ease. The state senate must still act before the General Assembly’s regular session ends in mid-March.
Home-school organizations portray the Tebow Bill as a civil rights measure. They claim it’s unfair to “discriminate” against families that pay taxes to support public schools while denying them access to extracurricular activities like football. Opponents, including groups that represent school administrators and teachers, say that Tebow Bills give special privileges to students whose families chose to keep them out of public schools in the first place. In Virginia, one opponent of HB 947 is Republican Del. Bob Tata, a former football player and high school coach, who said he fears it will lead to high schools recruiting “adolescent free agents.”
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I don’t object to home-schooled students playing high school football. But I laugh at the obnoxious civil rights rhetoric coming from the home-school lobby. For example, one website supporting of the Arkansas Tebow Bill described the measure as “prohibit[ing] discrimination against home-educated students in interscholastic activities.” Another article I found about Tebow’s experience made it sound like he was a martyr who braved the political assault from people who tried to take away his “right” to play for Nease.
There is simply no constitutional, legal or moral right to play football at the high school or college level. As I talked about in my previous column on social media use, the courts have long recognized participation in interscholastic athletics is a privilege subject to reasonable regulation. The fact that home-schooling families may pay taxes to support local school districts is irrelevant. For one thing, in states like Virginia, school funding is based on the number of students in attendance, which would exclude home-schooled football players.
More generally, most government services are restricted to a specific class of persons defined by law. Every high school league has eligibility rules, just as the NCAA and the SEC do for college teams. The home-school lobby argues they should be allowed to ignore one eligibility rule while meeting all of the others. Which is ironic, given that’s the same argument used by advocates of same-sex marriage, a practice I suspect most home-school groups — and Tim Tebow, for that matter — do not support.
The real problem I have here is one of jurisdictional precedent. Specifically, I’m bothered by the heavy-handed approach taken by HB 947, which reads, in relevant part,
No public school shall become a member of any organization or entity whose purpose is to regulate or govern interscholastic programs that does not deem eligible for participation a student who (i) is receiving home instruction pursuant to § 22.1-254.1, (ii) has demonstrated evidence of progress for two years in compliance with subsection C of § 22.1-254.1, (iii) is entitled to free tuition in a public school pursuant to § 22.1-3, (iv) has not reached the age of 19 by August 1 of the current school year, (v) is an amateur who receives no compensation, but participates solely for the educational, physical, mental, and social benefits of the activity, (vi) complies with all disciplinary rules applicable to all public high school athletes, and (vii) complies with all other rules governing awards, all-star games, parental consents, and physical examinations applicable to all high school athletes. Eligibility shall be limited to participation in interscholastic programs at the school serving the attendance zone in which such student lives.
The first sentence is key. Current Virginia law does not directly regulate eligibility for high school athletics. My search of the Virginia Code revealed no particular laws regarding athletics whatsoever beyond a broad authorization for school boards to offer such programs at their discretion. The Virginia High School League is a private, nonprofit corporation that administers high school football and other sports. School districts voluntarily participate in the VHSL. Under the Tebow Bill, no school could belong to VHSL unless they agree to make home-schooled students eligible to play.
HB 947 forces VHSL to change its voluntary rules in order to accommodate the political demands of the home-school lobby. This is a bad idea regardless of the merits of the underlying cause. State legislatures that have traditionally taken a hands-off approach to athletic eligibility issues should not change course just to appease a single group. It’s reckless and irresponsible, and it invites other groups to do the same.
In college sports, we’ve seen the damage well-intentioned political meddling can do in the form of Title IX. What starts out as a simple idea — women should have the same access to sports as men — turns into a Tsunami of unforeseen consequences and paralysis. One of the major stumbling blocks to meaningful NCAA reform is the fear of how any substantive change, such as paying football players stipends, might trigger the wrath of federal Title IX watchdogs.
As with Title IX, the problem with the Tebow Bill is that it allows legislators to do “drive-by” regulating. Everyone wants to identify themselves with Tim Tebow and support a law that sounds vaguely civil rights-ish. But the politicians don’t have to worry about implementation. That’s left to groups like the VHSL that just had their authority stripped away from them by over-eager legislators looking toward the next election. It’s no coincidence, mind you, that the principal sponsor of HB 947 is Del. Robert Bell, a Republican who is running for state attorney general in 2013. He looks at the Tebow Bill as a costless favor that will earn him support from conservative voters.
Colleges should be especially weary towards any legislative micro-management of athletics. We’re already subject to periodic saber rattling from state and federal officials over the purported inequities of the BCS. Just this past week, a member of the South Carolina House of Representatives proposed legislation that would mandate the annual playing of the South Carolina-Clemson football game. The last thing anyone, including college football fans, should want is federal or state legislators telling schools what games to schedule or what persons outside their normal student body should be eligible to play football.
If Virginia home-schooling parents want their children to play football, they should work with the VHSL — or better yet, form their own leagues — instead of crying to the state legislature as if they were victims of racial segregation. Unfortunately, the Tebow Bill’s proponents, in Virginia and elsewhere, know what they’re doing. By attaching themselves to a popular, charismatic figure in Tebow, home-school organizers know many politicians will be less likely to question the merits of the argument, not to mention the bad precedent that may be set.
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To play team sports, you should have to be enrolled in the school to play team sports. I think that home schooled students should NOT be allowed to jump into a schools sports team. The parents of the home schooled student do not want their child to be involved with the school for some reason so keep them uninvolved with the school completely.
And another thing that I might add is that student-athletes in public schools are held to a strict 2.0 GPA… There is not GPA for a home schooled student. They are not graded the way that a public school grades. It is patently unfair to the public school student with a 1.9 GPA who can’t play when the home-schooled student is not held to the same standards….
My wife and I home schooled our three children. My kids attended public school until sixth grade. We began to notice the lack of attention they recived because of class size, and of course we ran into that ONE teacher that seemed to care less about thair job. Two of my kids were in her 5 th grade class, so we said enough was enough.Most families I know only hs because of the lack of teaching in important things like, American history, and the role religion played in the development of the country. Also how anti religious the public school systems have become. My son would have enjoyed high school sports, but we never pursued it. Never thought it was open for us,so we didn’t try. As for home schoolers being able to play in high, and middle school, of course they should. My tax money went to fund athletic programs for your children, why not the HS. As for the GPA, nothing personal, but most HS kids I know could outperform public school kids nearly every time .if you won’t allow them to play, then give the parents their tax money back, what does it hurt for them to play. This guy acts like this is the great social issue of our time By the way, last time I checked, I still pay taxes to fund public schools. If my grandson wants to play for the local high school, why should he need a law passed so he can play? I guess this is still the country where you can achieve anything, as long as you don’t buck the public school system. I for one think the world is a better place having the Tim Tebow’s as role models, rather than some of the other’s. Guess Abe Lincon would have missed out on high school sports too.
Does that the mean they can keep their tax money “uninvolved” also. Just asking.
In Arkansas, if you are home schooled or go to private school, you get a tax credit voucher toward your childs education. Therefore, in AR, you aren’t paying for public schools. Therefore, a homeschooled student has no right to be involved in public school sports. And, as for HS kids outperforming public school kids, why is it that almost every single HS kid I have ever had contact with has been sent back at least one year when they returned to public or private school?
This is a tough one. States can do what ever they want. Its not a scientific sample but I know 10 different home schooled families. 6 of which once the kids got to high school put them in school. All 6 graduated early and went to schools like GA Tech, Vanderbilt, Yale, Duke, and Cornell. 3 on Golf scholarships because from the age of 8 were on the golf course during the day and schooled at night. The other 4 also went to college. But there was something different. Like I said, this is a tough one.
If the home school students’ attendance affects funding, then I disagree with letting them play for the local high school. If the parent’s tax money is going to the school’s whether the students attends or not, then I say let them play as long as the home school program is accredited. Without accreditation, that ‘A’ little Johnny got could’ve been from a group that isn’t worried about education as much as pandering to the parents to get their money.
On another note that should not have been in this article in the first place, I would like to speak out against the author’s statements in regard to same-sex marriage. The “eligibility rule” is a point in question, and it seems that his or her understanding of the issue leaves one wanting anyway. Maybe stick to football which the person seems to understand very well.
I personally don’t want to play football for a high school(I’m a girl). But I am Homeschooled and don’t appreciate the attack, at least in my cover school AL we are held to strict rules about our grades. From the age of 10 I have been getting post high school scores on my Standardized Achievement test. I took my ACT w/o studying and got a 28.
The reason I don’t go to school is in kindergarten They tried to teach how to count when I was learning to multiply at home. Taught me ABC’s when I read at a 3rd grade level. The public school where I live now taught some children whose parents were friends of my moms that 1/2 +1/2 =2/4. But I feel that if I or someone else had a serious athletic talent, they should get a fair chance to be recognized.
You obviously aren’t a part of the group that people are worried about when it comes to academics. Some home school programs aren’t as worried about education as yours is. I was not home schooled, but I did date a girl who was and her education and materials were laughable. Congrats on your accomplishments though! I hope for your continued success!
The other reason for not just looking at athletic talent is that at least some of these programs get funding from the schools which are funded by tax payers. If the student not attending the high school is hurting their funding by not attending but want the benefits of that funding, do you really think they should be able to do so? That’s like walking into a gym you aren’t paying dues to and using their equipment. It’s theft in a round about way.
I guess not, we pay for the public schools here whether we like them or not.
I don’t know of a single state, county, or local tax entity that does not collect school taxes from everyone, use the system or not. Nobody is “stealing” from anyone unless you consider the students in public schools taking from home-schooled or private school students. I call these choices. My property taxes are well over half for education. We already have rules that allow this in our local system. It is not limited to sports, other programs such as marching band are open. People pay their taxes, they should be allowed to use whatever portion of the system they choose.They all still have to make the cut, so I can’t see this as a big issue.
Once again, if the funding is based on enrollment numbers, then they have not paid money towards the services of that school. If not, then no problem.
:) nice post
The government has no business running sports programs. The government has no business running schools. It should all be private. Then we wouldn’t have any of these problems. If you pay, you play. If you get a scholarship, you play. It’s not complicated anymore.
Barring that, it makes no sense to prohibit a kid from playing sports when it is funded by his/her parents’ taxes. If you bar a kid from services, you should return his parents’ money.
lmao
As a homeschooling parent, I understand the logic that my tax money, which doesn’t go to educate my kids, could allow them to play varsity sports at the high school they would attend if they were public school educated. In the same breath I can see how that it shouldn’t, and really can’t be that simple. All public school kids aren’t even eligible for sports, so all home schooled kids wouldn’t be either.
To top that off, one of the great things about homeschooling here in North Carolina is how little the government interferes in my chosen curricula and how many hours of school I do every day. Once the government starts dictating privileges it won’t be a huge jump for them to start over-regulating. There are a great many opportunities for the playing of sports that don’t require the approval of the public school system. I’ll just stick with that, thanks, and the government can stay out of it.
I was homeschooled all through high school in Alabama, and spent several years lobbying for the Tebow Bill in the legislature. Sadly, it hasn’t passed because the teachers union and the state athletic association dictate education policy in the state – and they don’t like homeschoolers that much.
Just to address some of the concerns raised in the comments, I think the author should have done a bit of research on what problems have arisen from Florida’s equal access law. The answer? None. Out of the estimated 50,000 homeschoolers in the state, only 315 participated in high school sports. To date, there have been no outstanding instances of serious disciplinary violatins by a homeschooler. Not exactly a “tsunami” of unforeseen consequences.
As for the concerns about GPA requirements, do you think that parents are going to homeschool their children just so they can get around eligibility requirements to play football? If so, you are seriously underestimating how much it costs to homeschool. An easy solution to this concern would be to require a standard SAT or ACT score for homeschoolers wishing to play sports, especially since homeschoolers traditionally score much higher on those tests that public school students.
As for the author’s proposed alternatives for homeschoolers, it is often difficult or impossible to negotiate with a high school athletic association or to form a homeschool sports league. After years of lobbying the Alabama Athletic Assocation to allow homeschoolers to play, I’m convinced that I’d have a better chance of convincing a Nazi that Jews are great people. Homeschool leagues are often faced with severe limitations from high school sports associations. For example, my brother’s homeschool baseball team could not play private school teams or participate in any state-wide tournaments solely because the Alabama Athletic Association would not allow it. As a result, his team had to travel out of state (usually a trip of 5-6 hours) just to play a scrimmage game. Homeschool leagues also face a severe disadvantage since college recruiters don’t go to homeschool sports events.
I don’t believe that anyone was suggesting that parents would pull the kids into homeschooling to skirt eligibility requirements. It’s a bonus in some very specific cases. Especially in Alabama, there are SOME (read not all) programs that are complete crap that pander to parents who are not worried about education as much as other certain interests.
It does suck that there is so many problems creating home school teams and gaining inclusion. That’s just ridiculous, and it should be fixed. The Alabama Athletic Association needs to find a way to support this.
If that is the case, the problem is with those school programs, not with homeschoolers. Denying homeschoolers the opportunity to excel in sports just because a select few might abuse the new policies is not a sufficient justification. If it was, you could justify excluding anyone and everyone from high school sports because certain people misuse it. You could also justify doing away with most of the Bill of Rights.
Alabama’s system is all screwed up to start with I think they should let the kids play and I also thins that they should allow private schools play public schools in non conferance game and vice versa that would cut down on some of the long travel for both sides. AHSAA wont allow it and it has caused some of the private shcools to join the AHSAA and only play much larger schools because they can’t aford to travel the long distances most of these schools get killed weekend and week out and some never win a game and what does that teach the kids.I know that is kinda off the subject but it is part of what is wrong with the system a system that is all about the money and not about the kids. The AHSAA is afraid that the AISA might be on to something so they block everything they try to do AISA wanted to allow the home schooll kids to play and AHSAA is blocking it.I say do whats best for the kids future.