Admission & Enrollment Requirements

Admission

Homeless Students

Texas Education Code §25.001 (b) (5) ensures that homeless children (individuals who lack a fixed, regular and adequate residence or whose primary nighttime residence is a shelter, an institution providing temporary residence for individuals intended to be institutionalized, or a place not ordinarily used as a regular sleeping accommodation for human beings) are eligible for prompt access to enrollment. Residency requirements, guardianship requirements, or school record requirements cannot be used to prohibit or delay the enrollment of homeless children and youth. Additional information and resources relating to homeless students can be obtained from The Dana Center: http://www.utdanacenter.org/theo/.

Homeless students need their school administrator to apply to the UIL for a waiver of residence if the student plans to participate in varsity athletics.

Residence Rules

Residence rules for athletic varsity eligibility are found in Section 440 (b) and 442 of the Constitution and Contest Rules. They are applicable to UIL varsity athletic eligibility the first year the student attends the school.

Student athletes could be eligible for varsity athletics their first year of attendance if their parents have a bona fide residence (Section 442 [h]) within that school’s attendance zone, or if the student fulfills one of the exceptions in Section 440, or is granted a hardship waiver (Section 465) of the residence rule through the UIL office. Otherwise the student is ineligible for all varsity sports for one calendar year from the time of initial enrollment in the school.

All students, including 18-year-old students, are ineligible for all varsity athletics the first year of attendance at a new school unless the student’s parents reside within that attendance zone, or the student fulfills one of the exceptions listed in Section 440, or is granted a hardship waiver of the residence rule.

Public Education Grant (PEG)

The UIL State Executive Committee has issued the following interpretations regarding Public Education Grant (PEG) Intradistrict and Interdistrict Transfers (Low Performing to campus with Acceptable Rating Sub chapter 6, Section 29, Texas Education Code):

A student who transfers from a campus identified under the Public Education Grant (PEG) Program to a new school, which is considered to be a non-PEG campus, may be eligible according to the UIL residence rule (Section 440 (b)) provided the student is in compliance with the following provisions:

• The transfer complies with the conditions cited in annual memo from TEA.

• The student transferred from the PEG identified campus to the non-PEG campus at their first opportunity to do so. In this case “opportunity to do so” is determined by notification to parents of the student that the school the student is leaving has been PEG identified. School officials at the non-PEG campus must be advised that the student is transferring for PEG purposes prior to enrollment.

• The Previous Athletic Participation Form is completed and the UIL district executive committee finds the student did not change schools for athletic purposes.

School officials at the non-PEG campus shall inform students who are eligible for varsity athletics their first year after transferring from PEG identified campus that if they elect to transfer to another school they will be ineligible at the school to which they transfer for all varsity athletics for at least one calendar year. We recommend written notification to the student and parents.

The fact that a non-PEG campus begins to accept PEG transfers after the first year a campus has first been identified as a PEG campus does not cause a student to be eligible for varsity athletics the first year of attendance at the non-PEG campus.

A student who has attended a private school accredited by the Texas Private School Accreditation Commission for the previous calendar year or more may be eligible for varsity athletics at a UIL member high school according to § 440 (b) provided:

• The student’s home campus (high school located within attendance zone where the parents reside) is currently identified as a PEG identified campus.

• The campus the student is transferring to is a non-PEG campus.

• The student transfers at their first opportunity upon return to public school.

• The student is not transferring for athletic purposes.

The district executive committee should thoroughly evaluate Section 443, Changing Schools For Athletic Purposes, prior to ruling on the student’s varsity athletic eligibility.

Please be advised that a school district chosen by a student’s parent under this statute is entitled to accept or reject the application according to the criteria cited in the TEA correspondence.

Please note that the provisions above speak to UIL eligibility only and do not permit students who transfer from a PEG identified campus to another PEG identified campus to be eligible for varsity athletics their first year of attendance at the new campus. UIL rules do not prevent students from such transfers, but cause them to be ineligible for varsity athletics their first calendar year of attendance at the new school.
 

 

Non-Enrolled (Home Schooled Students)

Homeschool FAQ

 

Enrollment Requirements

Number of Classes Required to Be a Full-time Student (Home Bound, Block Schedules)

(1) How many classes must a student be enrolled in to be a full-time student? A student must be enrolled for at least four hours per day to be considered in membership for one full day (19 TAC §129.21 [h]). The classes in which the student is enrolled for the four hours may be for either state approved or local credit. Students are eligible to participate in a League contest as representatives of a participant school if they meet the TEA requirements above. They must be full-time day students in a participant high school and be in compliance with written transfer and admission policies of the local school.

• Home Bound: Full-time students who are placed on “home bound status” by their school officials remain eligible provided the classes in which they are assigned work to complete at home meet for at least four hours each day at school.

• Block Schedules: Students who are in classes more than four hours some days and less than four hours on other days are considered to be “full-time” if they spend an average of four hours per day in class for a five day school week.

College Courses

(2) May a college course be counted among the classes necessary for a student to be considered as full-time or participation in extracurricular activities? a) A school district board of trustees may adopt a policy that allows a student to be awarded credit toward high school graduation for completing college level courses. The course shall be provided only by an institution of higher education that is accredited by a regional accrediting association identified in 19 TAC §74.25.

b) To be eligible to enroll and be awarded credit toward state graduation requirements, a student must have approval of the high school principal or other school official designated by the district. The course for which credit is awarded shall provide advanced academic instruction beyond or in greater depth than the essential knowledge and skills for the equivalent high school course.

* Students must be receiving high school credit, either state approved or local credit, for the course to be counted toward the four hours of class per day.

Online Courses

(3) May an online course be counted for eligibility purposes as it relates to the full time student rule? Yes, based on the understanding that any online or virtual class, taken via the TxVSN or other district and state approved provider, is handled through the local independent school district in which the student is enrolled, the following information would apply:

Online courses would count toward determining the full time student status of a participant. Each online course taken through the district would count equivalent to the amount of time spent each day at school for a student taking that course or a similar course as part of their regular school day.

It is important to remember that school districts may voluntarily impose stricter standards than those cited in this document.

Junior High Students Enrolling in High School Classes

(4) May a student who has not yet reached the ninth grade take a high school course? Yes, and credits count toward high school eligibility the first six weeks of the school year when the student becomes a high school student. Students must pass all classes (including high school courses), except classes identified as honors by their local school district.

Students below the ninth grade who have not reached their 15th birthday on or before September 1 may enroll in high school academic classes without jeopardizing their four consecutive calendar years of high school eligibility. These students would not be eligible to compete in UIL high school athletic, academic, or one- act play contests.
 

Alternative Setting for Behavioral Management

(5) Are students who are placed in alternative settings for behavioral management eligible for extracurricular activities? Students who are placed in a disciplinary alternative education program (DAEP) for a reason included in TEC §37.006 must be prohibited from attending or participating in a school-sponsored or school- related activity as provided by Subsection (g) of that section.

Students placed in a DAEP pursuant to authority under a provision of the TEC other than §37.006 may be prohibited from participating in school-sponsored or school-related activities by local district policies.

 

Students who have been assigned to a DAEP for a reason included in TEC §37.006 or those assigned under a separate section of the TEC and prohibited from participating by local policy, may resume participation in UIL activities the first day they return to regular classes after completing the assigned length of time in the alternative education program.

*Note: If a school district does not want students assigned to DAEP for reasons that are not included under TEC §37.006 to participate in extracurricular activities, the district has to adopt policies to prohibit them from participating.
 

Two Class Periods for Single Extracurricular Activity & PE Class Limits

(6) Is it OK to practice for a single extracurricular activity more than one class period during the school day? No. 19 TAC §76.1001 (e) (1) and (2) address this issue. The State Board of Education has expressly stated in rule that a student may practice an extracurricular activity such as athletics OR drill team OR cheerleading during one period of the day.

The rationale of this limitation complies with the intent of TEC §33.081 (a) and TEC §7.102 (c) (27), which gives authority to the Commissioner of Education to limit extracurricular participation during the school day and school week. Furthermore, TEC §33.081 (a) states, “The rules must, to the extent possible, preserve the school day for academic purposes.” This language in the law is the basis for adopting a rule, which allows for practice of an extracurricular activity for one period of the day and preserving the remainder of the school day for academics.

The rule does not prohibit a student from enrolling in any number of state-approved classes, such as Stage Band and Instrumental Ensembles or Theatre Arts and Theatre Production, during the same school day so long as the extracurricular activity associated with the state approved class is not practiced more than one period of the day. The rule does not restrict a student from being enrolled in athletics and a state-approved course, which may be associated with an extracurricular activity during the same day. As stated above, a student may be enrolled in any number of state-approved classes. Even though there may be some similarities in the skills to be performed, a drill team member who is enrolled in a state-approved Dance class for fine arts credit is required to master successfully the essential knowledge and skills for Dance. Furthermore, the class must be taught by a teacher certified to teach Dance. Because Dance is a state-approved class, a student may be enrolled in Dance class period and in a pure extracurricular class period, such as athletics, during the same school day.

(7) May a student enroll in more than one physical education class in the same school day? Yes, if locally approved. The Texas Administrative Code does not prohibit a student from enrolling in any number of state approved courses. UIL rules specifically prohibit students from being enrolled in more than one physical education and/or athletic class; Exception (with local school approval): lifetime recreation and outdoor pursuits; PE substitutes: Partners PE, JROTC, cheerleading, drill team, marching band; innovative course: team sports officiating.

As such, there is nothing in statute that would prohibit a student from enrolling in more than one physical education class in the same school day; however, a school would be in violation of the UIL Constitution and Contest Rules and subject to the range of penalties should it occur, with exceptions as noted above.

Early and Mid-Year Graduates

(8) Are early or mid-year graduates who have not been awarded a high school diploma eligible to participate in extracurricular activities? Full-time enrollment is required for participation in UIL sponsored activities. See sections 1220 (g) and 1280 (h) of the UIL Constitution and Contest Rules for exceptions as they apply to baseball and softball playoffs extending beyond the end of the school year.

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Athletic Periods

Limitations on practice and rehearsal for extracurricular activities during the school day shall be as follows:

• A school district must limit a student to one period of practice during the regularly scheduled school day for specific extracurricular activities, such as athletics, or drill team, or cheerleading. Exception (with local school approval): PE Class: Adventure/Outdoor Education; PE Substitute: Partners PE, JROTC, Cheerleading, Drill Team, Marching Band.

• The limit of one period per school day for practice in an extracurricular activity does not prohibit a student from enrolling in any state-approved class. A student who is enrolled in a state-approved class that includes essential knowledge and skills that relate to the preparation for an extracurricular activity may practice that extracurricular activity no more than one period during the school day.

• A student may not be permitted to miss a scheduled academic class for an unrelated extracurricular activity.

• A school district must limit extracurricular practice during the school day to ensure that class periods for extracurricular practice do not exceed the time allotted for other class periods.

• A school operates on a traditional class schedule or on a non-traditional class schedule, such as alternating, accelerated, or a modified block schedule. Regardless of the schedule type in place, a school may elect to practice extracurricular activities daily, provided the total minutes allowed for the extracurricular practice is not greater than 300 minutes during the school week.

• Students attending study hall or tutorial sessions for the remainder of the block come under the following regulation: Tutorial sessions are conducted in classrooms, and dressing and redressing time is part of the athletic period - not the study hall or tutorial. Coaches are subject to penalty if these provisions are violated.

• All athletic periods shall be scheduled within the regular school day. A zero period may be scheduled before the first academic class of the day or a 7th, 8th, or 9th period may be scheduled after the last academic class of the day provided students are not enrolled in any other physical education class. The zero, 7th, 8th, or 9th period shall not be longer than other class periods.

Marching Band Periods

Marching band rehearsals may be conducted during the school day under the following provisions:

• A school district must limit a student to one period of practice during the regularly scheduled school day for specific extracurricular activities, such as athletics, or drill team, or cheerleading.

• The limit of one period per school day for practice in an extracurricular activity does not prohibit a student from enrolling in any state-approved class. A student who is enrolled in a state-approved class that includes essential knowledge and skills that relate to the preparation for an extracurricular activity may practice that extracurricular activity no more than one period during the school day.

• A student may not be permitted to miss a scheduled academic class for an unrelated extracurricular activity.

• A school district must limit extracurricular practice during the school day to ensure that class periods for extracurricular practice do not exceed the time allotted for other class periods.

• A school operates on a traditional class schedule or on a non-traditional class schedule, such as alternating, accelerated, or a modified block schedule. Regardless of the schedule type in place, a school may elect to practice extracurricular activities daily, provided the total minutes allowed for the extracurricular practice is not greater than 300 minutes during the school week.

• Rehearsal during this period may focus on the marching or music components that would be included in performances at marching competitions and appearances at football games or other extracurricular activities as defined by Commissioner of Education rule, 19 TAC Chapter 76.

• Since band is a part of the fine arts academic curriculum, the remaining portion of any instructional block that exceeds the limitations above could then be used to address the essential elements in music through the exploration of music concepts, the mastery of instrumental techniques, the development of sight reading skills, and the preparation of music for curricular concert performances. During this portion of the daily band period, lesson plans should be clearly defined and a grading policy should be established that would commensurate with other academic disciplines, such as language arts, science, and math.

• For both traditional and non-traditional scheduling, the time allotted for the marching band rehearsal should include time for set-up, movement to and from the drill field, etc.

• Under these provisions, no additional time during the school day is allowed for marching band performance preparations.

Key Points for Athletic and Marching Band Periods: The same schedule (traditional or non-traditional) shall be mandated throughout the semester. No additional time is allowed under any of the scheduling configurations described above for athletics or marching band performance preparation. Practice for athletics or extra-curricular marching performances is not allowed during tutorials, homeroom, or non-related academic periods.