Homeschool and private‑school families press Davis board to change athletic enrollment rules tied to Utah Fits All scholarships

Parents of homeschool and private‑school students asked the Davis School Board to change district rules that require full academic enrollment for students to participate in public‑school extracurricular activities, saying the requirement conflicts with Utah Fits All scholarship rules and forces families to choose between scholarships and sports.

Christopher West described a family caught between a private‑school scholarship and extracurricular eligibility, saying he was asked to choose "between my Catholic faith and my daughter's health and well‑being" because his daughter’s access to her private school scholarship could be jeopardized by district enrollment rules. Shannon McGuire, whose son is homeschooled and participates in Viewmont High School athletics, said the district’s decision not to be a Utah Fits All vendor creates barriers for homeschool athletes and urged the board to amend athletic policies so students can participate without full academic enrollment.

Cathy West told the board that under current practice her daughter was treated as a public‑school student for extracurricular participation and that the technical enrollment status disqualified the daughter from a private‑school scholarship. "The district has told families in this situation to choose scholarship or sports," West said. She cited Utah State code that allows homeschool and private‑school students to join local school teams if their own school lacks athletics and argued the district's policy should reflect that state law and the scholarship’s income‑based priorities.

Speakers proposed technical fixes such as registering students for athletic participation without creating a full Weighted Pupil Unit (WPU) enrollment, clarifying how team conditioning classes are handled, and offering a policy that ensures lower‑income families do not have to forfeit scholarship funds to play for district teams. Board members said they would review the concerns and consider whether policy amendments or clarifications are needed.

Why it matters: The Utah Fits All program distributes scholarship funds by income tier; the current district interpretation can disqualify lower‑income students from scholarship funding or from team participation, speakers said. Parents argued the district’s policy has disproportionate effects on families relying on income‑based scholarships and called for changes to align district practice with state law.