ISSUES ARISING IN EXTRACURRICULAR PROGRAM MANAGEMENT

1. ISSUES ARISING IN EXTRACURRICULAR PROGRAM MANAGEMENT Fall 2005 School Law WorkshopPresented by Kenneth A. Roos, Esq. and Megan E. Shafer, Esq.

2. WHO CAN PARTICIPATE (Restrictions May Apply) • Approved Private School or Non-Traditional Placement • Alternative Placement • MCIU • RTF • PRRI • Homebound • Charter School (Cyber or Regular)

3. Charter School • School District can require that a student enrolled in a charter school demonstrate that he or she meets those requirements before allowing that student to participate in school activities. See Angstadt v. Midd-West Sch. Dist., 377 F.3d 338 (3rd Cir. 2004).

4. WHO CAN’T ? • Private School (Sectarian or non-Sectarian) • Includes Release in Lieu of FAPE

5. Home Schooled – Stand By • Senate Bill 361 passed by full Senate • would require all school districts to allow home-schooled students to participate in extracurricular activities, including • clubs, sports, musical ensembles, and theatrical productions. • Home-schooled students still required to meet the equivalent participation and try-out criteria as students enrolled in the district.

6. Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic Association Rules and Regulations • Transfer from Another School • Eligible unless recruited • Exception for Hurricane Katrina • Age • Eligible unless student reached 19th birthday by June 30th preceding the school year. • For 7th and 8th grade students, 15th birthday by the June 30th cut off date. • A student with a disability may receive a waiver of the age limitation.

7. Eligibility - Academic • Academic Requirements • Enrolled full time in the school where he or she intends to participate • Absent 20 days or less per semester. • Eligibility extends for only 4 years after grade 8. • must be passing in four full credit courses every Friday of the marking period. • otherwise ineligible for one week.

8. Section 504 – Students with Handicaps • Equal Opportunity Standard • Less than an entitlement • Unless provided for directly in the student’s IEP and deemed to be an essential component of the student’s educational program • Should happen rarely • Triggers transportation obligation • More like a privilege

9. Section 504 con’t • Not required to fundamentally alter program • No undue burden • Financial • Administrative

10. Programs with Essential Eligibility Requirements • not required to waive eligibility requirements or automatically qualify students with disabilities • must meet the same essential eligibility requirements as nondisabled students • affirmative obligation on schools to consider whether the student with a disability would be able to meet essential eligibility standards with the provision of additional modifications, or auxiliary aids and services. • i.e. interpreter services, personal aides, and protective equipment and gear

11. Programs with Essential Eligibility Requirements (con’t) • decisions regarding the assignment of positions on an athletic team, or the amount of play time a student receives are not discriminatory where they are based on competent judgments about the student’s skill level and ability.

12. Programs Which Are Generally Open to the Student Population • Least restrictive environment principles apply • Have decision made by informed IEP team • Be aware of transportation obligations

13. Other Limitations and Restrictions • Safety Risks • Maximum Age Eligibility • Minimum Grades or Credit Hour • Practical Considerations

14. Title IX Issues • athletic financial assistance • effective accommodation of student interests and abilities (i.e., participation rates) • other program components

15. Title IX - applicability • Interscholastic athletics • Intramural sports • Physical education courses • Other school-sponsored athletic programs.

16. Other Program Components • Equipment and Supplies • Scheduling of Games and Practice Times • Travel and Daily Allowance • Coaching • Locker Rooms, Practice and Competitive Facilities • Medical and Training Facilities and Services • Publicity • Support Services

17. Title IX Options • Substantially proportionate athletic opportunities for male and female athletes; • A history and continuing practice of expanding opportunities for the under-represented sex; • Full and effective accommodation of the interests and abilities of the under-represented sex.

18. Other Athletic Program Components • OCR looks for a “disparity” between the men’s and women’s programs. • defined as a difference, on the basis of sex, in benefits or services, which has a negative impact on athletes of one sex when compared with benefits or services available to athletes of the other sex. • Applies to overall program • Nondiscriminatory factors may account for differences

19. OCR Investigations of Program Components • Usually limited to specific program component • Differences balanced and possibly offset • Investigator has great latitude

20. Booster Clubs • Other athletic benefits” is not limited to those benefits paid directly by the school itself. • includes those benefits paid by booster clubs, by team fund-raising activities and by any other source. • need to monitor the distribution of all benefits to all teams

21. Challenge to Title IX enforcement • Appeal from the National Wrestling Coaches Association rejected by U.S. Supreme Ct. • accuses federal officials of discriminating against male athletes • lawsuit should have been filed against individual colleges that eliminated men’s sports, not the federal government.

22. PART-TIME EMPLOYMENT OF PSERS RETIREES • separate contract for extracurricular position performed primarily outside regular instructional hours and not part of the mandated educational curriculum. • primarily means that more than half of the extracurricular employment hours are outside the school’s regularly scheduled class hours. • Specifically includes the position of athletic director, and other administrative positions that do not directly work with students. • Contract must include a waiver of any potential retirement benefits from the extracurricular employment.