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CFB ISD administration urges board to opt out of Senate Bill 401’s automatic homeschool UIL participation
Summary
District presenters told trustees Senate Bill 401 would require districts to allow non‑enrolled (homeschool) students to compete in UIL activities unless the board votes to opt out; CFB ISD administration recommended opting out and flagged logistics, eligibility, funding and insurance gaps.
At a July 14 work study meeting, district administrators briefed the Carrollton‑Farmers Branch ISD Board of Trustees on Senate Bill 401 and recommended the board vote to opt out of the law27s automatic inclusion of homeschooled students in University Interscholastic League (UIL) activities.
Administrators said SB401, adopted this legislative session, changes prior law (House Bill 547) from a permissive “opt‑in” approach to a “shall provide” requirement unless a district votes to decline participation. Chris Moore, assistant superintendent of operations, and Renee Putter, director of athletics, led the presentation and answered trustees27 questions about eligibility, roster management and other operational impacts.
The recommendation to the board was to record a formal vote to opt out by the statutory deadline. Renee Putter said she surveyed about 23 neighboring districts, noting “one right now is definitely an opt in, and that is Keller ISD,” and that most nearby districts the district plays are indicating they will opt out. The administration said if a district does not take a vote by Sept. 1, the law treats that as an opt in and homeschool students would become eligible for campus‑based UIL competition based on their residential address.
Administrators warned trustees of practical and policy issues the district would have to resolve if it allowed non‑enrolled students to participate: eligibility timing and grade‑check differences across grading systems, application of the district27s student‑code and extracurricular conduct rules, roster management and how practice‑only participation could affect enrolled students. Putter also told trustees that homeschooled participants do not generate state funding for the district and that outside athletic insurance would not cover non‑enrolled students: “They would not be covered under our athletic insurance because they are not an enrolled student,” she said.
Board members asked about current demand and logistics. Putter said CFB had received “anywhere between 10 to 15 calls a year inquiring about it” and that the district currently has no homeschooled students participating because the district previously asked parents to enroll children if they wanted to participate. Trustees and administrators discussed tryouts, varsity sit‑out rules under UIL, limits on outside trainers, and the short timeline to draft and adopt any local policy or administrative procedures.
No formal board motion was made during the meeting; administrators said they would return to trustees with recommended policy language and an implementation plan for the board27s consideration before the Sept. 1 deadline.
Ending: The presentation concluded with administration27s advice that the district opt out and with a promise to return with specific policy language and logistics recommendations for a formal board vote before the September deadline.
