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Thursday, December 07, 2006

Public vs. Private: The Great Debate

BLOUNTSTOWN - For the second straight year, Blountstown’s 12-0 football team lost to private school Ocala Trinity Catholic in the third round of the state playoffs.

“It’s something that’s been talked about for years,” Wewahitchka Athletic Director Todd Lanter said.  “This is nothing new!”

Lanter is talking about public high schools playing against private high schools.  Wewahitchka’s softball and baseball team’s were both knocked out of the Final Four in their respective sports by private schools.  In both cases, Wewa’s teams were the only public schools remaining of the four.

“It’s tough to compete,” Lanter said.  “We’re just asking for an even playing field.”

But most recently, Blountstown lost to Trinity Catholic in the third round of the playoffs two years in a row.  The Tigers lost those two games by a combined score of 93-7.

“It’s not about us losing two football games,” Blountstown Athletic Director Greg Jordan said.  “It’s about the way things are done day in and day out.”

According to Jordan, the way things are done for private schools is controlling enrollment.

“The cut-off for [Class] 2B is 411 to 616 [students],” Jordan said.  “They can stay around that 600 mark and not go into the next classification by controlling the enrollment.”

Blountstown principle Keith Summers served on the Representative Assembly of the Florida High School Athletic Association (FHSAA) last year.  He said the board voted on a comprehensive law that required students who transferred schools to play one year on the junior varsity level. 

That law was passed unanimously by the public schools.

“However, I believe a small group of people representing the home school and select group of private schools went to the legislature and got them to overturn the bylaw,” Summers said.

Both Lanter and Jordan suggested the same reason why the legislature overturned the bylaws.

“It’s not a concern to them,” Lanter said.  “That’s where they’re kids are going to school.”

One solution to the problem would be to count each private school student as a 1.5 compared to a public school’s 1:1 ratio for enrollment.  But again, there’s that easy loop-hole for private schools to cap enrollment.

“My selection would be to separate public and private when it comes playoff time,” Jordan said.

But Lanter does not see that ever happening.

With the way the rule stands now.  Public schools and private schools will have to settle their differences on the playing field.

Feel free to voice your opinion in your “comments” below.

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