CHARLESTON, W.Va. — Students would be allowed to play on their school sports team while at the same time playing for a travel team in the same sport at the same time in a bill that passed the Senate Education Committee Tuesday.
The bill, SB 813, says keeping kids from travel teams during their school team’s season is both unlawfully arbitrary and not rational.
Senate Education Committee Chair Amy Grady, R-Mason, the bill’s lead sponsor, said she believes a student can be loyal to their school team while at the same time playing travel ball.
“A lot of these parents and students are choosing travel over playing for their high school team because the travel gives them more exposure to more college coaches and other things. So we want to be able to get that exposure and have the sense of pride for playing for your community,” Grady said.
The bill says “a county board of education and the West Virginia Secondary School Activities Commission may not restrict nor prohibit a student from competing in non-school events or participating on non-school competitive teams as a condition of playing for a school extracurricular activity or sport.”
Sen. David Stover, R-Wyoming, a former coach, said he foresees some problems with the change. He said loyalties could be divided.
“I don’t agree that you should be able to have both teams operating in the same season,” Stover said. “If I’m going to play for the high school I shouldn’t divide my time as a coach or player.”
Stover said high school coaches may choose to bench players who choose the travel team over the school team.
Grady said that’s a coach’s call.
“I do agree that’s a coach’s decision. If you choose to play on another team during your season. The coach could say you are going to lose your starting spot. That’s a coach’s decision. That’s why we hire coaches, right?”
Grady said that most travel team seasons come after after the actual high school season.
The committee approved an amendment that would allow high school coaches to coach travel teams in the same sport. That is currently not allowed by the West Virginia SSAC.
Amendment sponsor, Sen. Mike Oliverio, R-Monongalia, said he wants to give coaches as much flexibility as possible.
“Who better to coordinate with than with yourself? I just want to tie the hands of our coaches and create more flexibility,” Oliverio said.
The approved amendment does say the coach who chooses to coach travel ball could only do so if it doesn’t interview with his or her contract with the county board of education.
The bill now heads to the full Senate for consideration.