CANYON, Texas — The Canyon ISD Board of Trustees on July 14 approved local policy language that opts the district out of allowing students who are not enrolled in the district — including private or home‑schooled students — to participate in district curricular or extracurricular activities. The change follows a state law revision in Senate Bill 401 that altered eligibility language statewide.

Senate Bill 401 amended the Education Code to change discretionary language about non‑enrolled students. Previously districts had discretion to permit non‑enrolled students to participate in extracurricular activities; SB401’s change made the standard prescriptive in certain contexts, triggering a board decision about whether to accept the new interpretation or to opt out locally. Canyon ISD legal staff presented two revised local policies, FD Local and FM Local, implementing the board’s decision.

Kayla, a district policy/legal staff member who presented the policies, told trustees the change would restrict participation to students enrolled in Canyon ISD and would not permit concurrent enrollment or extracurricular participation by students enrolled elsewhere, including private schools and homeschools. The district emphasized the policy only affects extracurricular participation by non‑enrolled students, not the district’s internal attendance or enrollment processes.

Discussion and concerns: Several trustees voiced concerns about equity and verification — in particular, how to ensure ‘no‑pass, no‑play’ standards and academic eligibility are enforced if parents could withdraw students to homeschool and still seek participation. Trustees asked whether the district could face sudden surges in participation requests from outside students and whether the district would be prepared to add staff or manage disciplinary issues for students not enrolled in the district.

Dr. Fusi, a district administrator who joined the discussion, told the board the district had solicited input from neighboring superintendents and athletic directors. He said experience varied across the region; some districts have allowed a small number of exceptions for non‑enrolled students, while many districts in the area either opt out or restrict participation because of verification, transportation, funding, and fairness concerns.

The board voted unanimously to adopt the local policy language in FD Local and FM Local as presented, thereby restricting eligibility for district activities to enrolled students. The new policy language will be implemented through district regulations that detail the application and verification process for any future exceptions and explain the administrative scope of the policy.

Why it matters: The policy affects extracurricular eligibility for students who live outside the district or who are homeschooled but seek to participate in school‑sponsored activities (athletics, UIL academics, etc.). Trustees said the policy is meant to preserve fairness for enrolled students, prevent unanticipated resource burdens and ensure accountability for academic eligibility and discipline.

Next steps: The administration will draft regulations that define how the policy will be implemented, including any limited exception process, documentation required, and operational protocols (transportation, supervision, and discipline). Trustees asked staff to monitor state guidance or clarifications that may offer alternative compliance paths in the future.