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Parents, students urge Toms River school board to revise ban on homeschooled athletes
Summary
Multiple parents and students urged the Toms River Regional School District to revise policy 2431, which currently bars homeschooled students from participating on district interscholastic teams; speakers asked for guideline-based access rather than a categorical ban.
Daniel Akerman, of 118 Kettle Creek, told the Board of Education that the district's policy 2431 unfairly bars homeschooled students from participating in high school interscholastic sports and should be replaced with a guidelines-based approach. "We are seeking a revision to the policy 2431 to implement a new set of guidelines that would replace the current broad brush ban," Akerman said during public comment.
Andrew Akerman, Daniel's son, described missing the Ocean County swimming championships because homeschoolers are excluded and asked the board for an explanation and a timely change: "I'm not sure why homeschoolers are being excluded from these activities...please change this policy as soon as possible so I don't miss these opportunities next year." His teammate Gavin supported the appeal, calling Andrew "the best teammate" and urging the board to allow deserving homeschooled students to join teams.
Speakers asked the board to consider less restrictive safeguards than a blanket ban, including academic verification or program-based eligibility. Public commenters cited the district policy's 2006 origin and said current educational resources and oversight make alternatives feasible.
The board said the topic had been the subject of that evening's executive session and that discussion would continue at the committee level; the board offered to notify commenters about next steps and invited private follow-up meetings with administration. No formal change to policy 2431 occurred at the meeting.
