Under the new bill, which was approved in May, school districts are automatically opted in to allow homeschool students to participate in extracurricular activities, unless they choose to opt out. The previous House Bill 547, or Tim Tebow Bill, passed in 2021, required districts to opt in to allow participation.
At the local level
Katy ISD trustees voted 4-3 to opt out of the program July 28, while Lamar CISD trustees voted unanimously June 17 to opt in, limiting the offerings to athletic extracurriculars for homeschoolers who are residentially zoned to the district.
Under the new bill, LCISD will receive $1,500 per participating homeschool students who qualify by providing proof of residency and test scores that demonstrate they meet UIL requirements
How it works
LCISD Director of Athletics Devin Gabbert said at the June 22 meeting that homeschool students who participate in LCISD athletics must:
- Be selected by a team during a try-out process
- Register through Student Programs
- Be enrolled part-time (under two hours/day)
- Follow all UIL academic requirements and campus athletic policies
- Provide their own transportation to practices and games
KISD trustee Rebecca Fox said non-KISD students should not be allowed to participate in KISD’s concurrent enrollment or extracurricular activities, as doing so could take opportunities away from students whose families have chosen and fully participate in the district. However, she said she would be open to reconsidering the decision with more data available from other district for the following year.
“I could change my mind based on how many children, what kinds of things are they interested in, how’s it working for other places, but not today.”
However, LCISD trustee George Arroyos, who is a professor at Wharton County Junior College, said homeschool students who are enrolled through the college’s dual credit program are typically high performers with strong parental involvement, which would improve the district’s extracurricular programs.
“I think [the policy] makes it a stronger experience for them as students, and it supports public education,” he said. “A rising tide will raise all ships, and we'll all be better for it.”
Looking ahead
LCISD will begin to allow participation for the first time in the 2025-26 school year, officials said.
School districts that do not want to allow participation—like KISD—will be required to opt out annually, according to the bill.
