How does your state public and private school sports recruiting? (scholarships, course)
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That's why I find these type of threads so interesting. Here in FL the best charters have lottery enrollment. It is difficult to just enroll your kid.
I know two Jewish kids who enrolled in a local Catholic sports powerhouse on the basis of its fabulous lacrosse program. Well-those boys had a falling out with the coach (he's obnoxious) and are no longer playing lacrosse as juniors. They would love to play their senior year but most local private schools have a policy against financial aid for incoming seniors so it will be difficult for them. Around here the private schools have better lacrosse programs than the public schools. That's not true for all sports though. Many of our local public schools are really good at other sports.
Here in CO all the charter schools enroll by lottery. Some "magnet" schools enroll on the basis of audition, e.g. Denver School for the Arts. Also, the charters tend not to have the best sports teams, and DSA has no sports at all. In my district, only one charter HS even offers athletics, and it only offers baseball (B), basketball (B&G), Cheerleading, Cross Country (Co-ed), Golf (B/G), Soccer (B/G), Softball (G), Tennis (B/G), Track and Field (Co-Ed), Volleyball (G). Anyone wanting to do another sport must compete in their attendance area school, or if they don't have the sport, in the next closest school. Ditto if a charter offers no sports at all. There are only a few big Catholic schools in CO that are considered sports powerhouses. I don't know what the best Lacrosse Schools are.
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Originally Posted by strawflower
Recruiting is technically not allowed in my state (WI). And for the most part, I actually do believe that schools aren't reaching out to kids to get them to come for sports. However, private schools have several advantages that public schools don't have-
1. It is very easy for a kid/parent to say, "Hey, I am/my kid is a good football/basketball/soccer/squash/basketweaving player. Private school X has won 5 state titles in a row for that sport, while our home public school's team is never very good." And thus, they enroll. The only way a kid could attend a different public school than the one they are zoned for in order to play a sport is if their parents bought a house in that district. I don't know many parents who would do that.
2. Once you get to regional/sectional/state level of play, teams play other teams based on their size. There a lot of private schools in metro Milwaukee whose enrollments are small (ie 300 kids total in the HS), but they have the benefit of being able to draw from an entire 2 million person metro area. The 300 kid public high school in say, Cuba City, Wisconsin, population 3000, doesn't have that advantage. Yet, the two go up against one another in post-season play and it's not pretty.
Especially in the lower divisions, private schools absolutely dominate in sports like soccer, tennis, golf, volleyball, etc. where playing club/having a private coach is key to success. Kids living in rural Wisconsin just don't have access to the top level club teams/private coaches and clubs that kids living in a wealthy suburban area of one of the larger metro areas do. Football, track, cross country, and wrestling, not so much, because you don't really need to play club football (does that even exist?) to succeed at the high school level or a private instructor to be a good cross country runner.
1. Colorado has statewide open enrollment. There are some CHSAA (Colorado High School Activities Assn) rules about transferring schools and doing sports.
2. I guess that is similar in Colorado, but the Catholic school system isn't as strong here. Colorado has 5 divisions, and most of the private schools, Catholic, other religious and general private are 3A at most, 5A being the largest schools. Some are even 6-man or 8-man in football.
3. Soccer is big here at some of the suburban Denver high schools. Tennis, which I know a bit about from a friend who had two kids that did HS tennis, is mostly a club thing as far as college scholarships go, as is gymnastics which I have personal experience with. You do club gymnastics to get a scholarship. Some club coaches don't even permit their athletes to do HS gymnastics. Others do, but club always comes first.
The only way a kid could attend a different public school than the one they are zoned for in order to play a sport is if their parents bought a house in that district. I don't know many parents who would do that.
It happens. And many parents are renters, so moving to a nearby town isn't such a big deal.
But you have to be careful - you can't tell anyone you are moving in order to get Little Johnny into Coach X's program, or he could be banned by the state authorities. A case like that happened in New Jersey a few years ago.
And in my kids' Catholic school, my son tells me, a kid transferred from public school to play basketball because his Mom was unhappy with the coach at the giant public school. She wrote the coach a letter gloating that he was changing schools and would be getting a lot of playing time. Well, that coach turned the letter over to the state authorities, and the kid was banned from competing. That's the story, anyway.
It happens. And many parents are renters, so moving to a nearby town isn't such a big deal.
But you have to be careful - you can't tell anyone you are moving in order to get Little Johnny into Coach X's program, or he could be banned by the state authorities. A case like that happened in New Jersey a few years ago.
And in my kids' Catholic school, my son tells me, a kid transferred from public school to play basketball because his Mom was unhappy with the coach at the giant public school. She wrote the coach a letter gloating that he was changing schools and would be getting a lot of playing time. Well, that coach turned the letter over to the state authorities, and the kid was banned from competing. That's the story, anyway.
My dad was an administrator and would often get calls from parents at private schools telling him they're kid is considering transferring and will he get playing time. My dad had some formula answer about not being able to tell them that. I think a lot of parents often don't realize if they get their kid into the "top" school for a particular sport that their kid might be better off at a public school that isn't as stacked. I often see plenty of unhappy catholic school kids sitting on the bench during basketball that could probably be starting for their local team.
I often see plenty of unhappy catholic school kids sitting on the bench during basketball that could probably be starting for their local team.
LOL at our small Catholic school, it's the opposite. Some kids at our school would start anywhere, while others wouldn't even make varsity at a big public school if only because of the volume of bodies available. I just hope those unhappy kids on the bench weren't "recruited"!
LOL at our small Catholic school, it's the opposite. Some kids at our school would start anywhere, while others wouldn't even make varsity at a big public school if only because of the volume of bodies available. I just hope those unhappy kids on the bench weren't "recruited"!
That's just it. I do believe some situations just don't pan out but the kid feels trapped and I believe some coaches "hoard" players. Given that most catholic schools in this area need all the money they can get, I wouldn't be surprised. Ironically, another private school (prep, not catholic...$30,000/year) just got rid of their athletic scholarships. Parents spending that kind of money for an all around school experience weren't happy with their kids making JV while scholarship athletes got the playing time on varsity. I kind of understand.
That's just it. I do believe some situations just don't pan out but the kid feels trapped and I believe some coaches "hoard" players.
Yeah, but that happen at any school and also on "elite travel teams". It's an honor to be selected to the team, yadda yadda, but what kid would choose to ride the pine for an elite team when they could be starting for a 2nd tier team?
BTW since you're in CT you can probably get WFAN on AM 660 (or via streaming). They have a show on Sunday mornings from 8:00-9:00 that deals with youth sports topics, including the problems faced by parents and coaches when it comes to playing time, recruiting, and so forth. You get perspectives from coaches and parents who call in, as well as now-adult former student-athletes. It's a very good show and I think any parent of a young athlete would find it interesting.
If you believe that, I have a bridge to sell you. Athletics are just another reason to see the lottery system for the sham it is. When one charter school out of Hartford, CT that graduates about 60 kids per year yet has a basketball team with three Division 1 prospects, that isn't coincidence.
That's just it. I do believe some situations just don't pan out but the kid feels trapped and I believe some coaches "hoard" players. Given that most catholic schools in this area need all the money they can get, I wouldn't be surprised. Ironically, another private school (prep, not catholic...$30,000/year) just got rid of their athletic scholarships. Parents spending that kind of money for an all around school experience weren't happy with their kids making JV while scholarship athletes got the playing time on varsity. I kind of understand.
Athletic scholarships are not permitted in my state.
^^I couldn't find anything about scholarships in my state's athletic association bylaws, but I did find this: 600.7 SPECIALIZED SPORTS TRAINING SCHOOLS
Any public or private school that offers specialized sports training in any sport as part of its curricular or extra-curricular educational programs shall NOT be eligible for membership in the Colorado High School Activities Association due to the inherent competitive advantages derived from such programs.
^^I couldn't find anything about scholarships in my state's athletic association bylaws, but I did find this: 600.7 SPECIALIZED SPORTS TRAINING SCHOOLS
Any public or private school that offers specialized sports training in any sport as part of its curricular or extra-curricular educational programs shall NOT be eligible for membership in the Colorado High School Activities Association due to the inherent competitive advantages derived from such programs.
FWIW
I don't know exactly what our state rules are, but catholic schools usually don't give athletic scholarships in name. They are academic and/or financial aid which usually go to kids that aren't that academically stellar.
The prep school I was speaking about that discontinued athletic scholarships has their own league and they do not compete against public schools at sanctioned events. I'm only aware of this because my daughter's team picked up a few kids that left the prep school.
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