lawprofessors

By Michelle Ball, California Education Attorney for Students since 1995 High school sports laws in California are the bane of many parents, and students, existence.  They are restrictive and can be confusing for one and all.  One of the most common issues for students involves the transfer process, particularly when an overzealous parent calls up the new school prior to the transfer or an old coach is associated with the new school.  This may be found to be "athletic motivation" and can result in the student not being able to participate in sports for one calendar year. No student who transfers schools (whether they move or not) may participate in sports at their new school until they are granted permission by the California Interscholastic Federation (CIF), the ruling body over California high school sports.  CIF writes bylaws which are updated annually (usually during the summer) which cover most sports issues, including the ability of students to participate. ...

By Michelle Ball, California Education Attorney for Students since 1995 Is your son or daughter transgender , identifying as the opposite sex?  Do they play sports?  Which team do they play on: the teams of their physical gender (for example, female for female teams or male for male teams) or consistent with their gender identity?  Per the California Interscholastic Federation (CIF) , the governing body for California high school sports, they might be able to pick either team. Per the 2015-2016 CIF Bylaws, " Guidelines for Gender Identity Participation ," hereinafter "Guidelines" [scroll down to the "Policies" section in the link]: "All students should have the opportunity to participate in CIF activities in a manner that is consistent with their gender identity, irrespective of the gender listed on a student's records.  The student and/or the student's school may seek review of the student's eligibility for participation in interscholasti...

By Michelle Ball, California Education Attorney for Students since 1995 Has your son or daughter been banned from playing sports by the local CIF office due to an alleged "sports motivated" t ransfer?  Is your initial sit-out period being denied on your first change of schools?  Or is your child banned for some other reason which you dispute?  If so, it may be time to move forward with a formal appeal to the State  CIF  Appeals Office .  How does this process work?   How things go with an individual school/site/student can vary, but usually the process starts before most parents realize the seriousness of the situation.  Let's take transfer eligibility as our example.  Other issues may also be sent to the local CIF office and a similar process would occur. If a parent is lucky, they may be notified that their child's transfer eligibility is being sent up to the local CIF Commissioner.  If they are really lucky, they may be notified that ...

By Michelle Ball, California Education Attorney for Students since 1995 Recently, the California Interscholastic Federation, aka CIF, the governing body for high school sports in California, softened their interdistrict transfer rules for the better.  It is still confusing, but students should benefit from this move. Previously, there was a single transfer allowed without  a "valid change of residence" (a "valid change of residence" is moving house to house) prior to the tenth grade year.  Under the amended CIF  Rule 207 , a student may transfer without moving, and may be able to compete at a new school after a "sit out period." This can be during any year of high school, so long as this is their first transfer without a "valid change of residence."   How this works is, say student A played junior varsity or varsity football at School X.  They thereafter transfer to School Y prior to the first football game that year without a "valid change ...

By Michelle Ball, California Education Attorney for Students since 1995 I owe a great debt of gratitude to all my clients who have trusted and supported the Law Office of Michelle Ball since 1995.  As a student attorney, going against schools and colleges in all their various forms, it is not always easy for me or the families I represent.  I am grateful for all the families who have trusted me to get involved and so thankful when they take time to write a positive review of my office.  Check out this testimonial which tells the story of a dire situation involving a sports team exclusion.  I am very proud of the help I have provided and so glad this student is back on the team.   "My husband and I decided to hire Michelle Ball after our daughter was unjustly cut from the high school varsity soccer team. We appealed the coach�s decision and met with a panel of six which included the assistant principal, the coach, the athletic director, as well as four others. Th...

By Michelle Ball, California Education Attorney for Students since 1995 One of the top stories in my area (Sacramento, California) and apparently around the globe, is that of the female student whose coach attempted to lift her out of the water by her hair at a swim meet.  The student was thereafter told that she was kicked off the swim team and stripped of her swim badges, all because she and another student swam half of their portion of a freestyle swim race.  The word "overkill" seems in order. This incident has now gone global with internet access to the media.  The man involved, Geoff Capell, has now reportedly quit his position as assistant swim coach and the head swim coach (his daughter) remains.  This is BIG news and such actions can cause BIG problems for school districts. Meanwhile, despite the situation, when I heard from the family, they were getting nowhere as far as getting the student, and her teammate who was also kicked off, back on the team.  ...

By Michelle Ball, California Education Attorney for Students since 1995 Please note, CIF rules have changed and the below is based on rules prior to July 2012.  See my new blog here on the new "improved" rules. Sports issues are plentiful in the school arena.  A frequent issue which arises involves the transfer rules under the California Interscholastic Federation, aka CIF. CIF governs public school sports at the high school level and in some junior high schools as well.  They write various rules and bylaws which govern how students play, who can play, and other items.  The rules can be seen here  http://www.cifstate.org/governance/constitution_bylaws/index.html . One of the most frequent areas with which my clients have trouble involve the CIF transfer eligibility rules, Rules 206 and 207.  These are important as they can prohibit a student from playing certain sports if they change schools without meeting the CIF eligibility requirements.  The rules...

By Michelle Ball, California Education Attorney for Students since 1995 Hello! The blogging world is a new one for me.  I am an attorney in Sacramento, California practicing education law on behalf of students since 1995 .  I handle a whole gamut of issues, including student discipline matters, expulsions, suspensions and suspension appeals, even protesting inappropriate behavior contracts and other punishments.  I also delve into special education, attend IEP (Individualized Education Program) meetings, 504 meetings, and file due process as needed.  Help usually begins with a review of documents, and correspondence to the school, school district or college involved.  Oftentimes I can resolve matters via phone and email without leaving my office.  Sometimes we have to go further as a personal appearance is required   (e.g. at an expulsion hearing or board of education meeting) or necessary to move things along.  My clients also help determine whic...