Competitive balance solutions in interscholastic athletics in Illinois: a historical-interpretative analysis

According to the latest information available from the National Federation of State High School Associations, participation in interscholastic sports in the United States eclipsed 7.8 million students during the 2022–2023 school year. A uniquely American phenomenon, high school sports provide participation opportunities for students in schools both large and small, urban and rural, and for students who attend schools that are both public and private. It is this final distinction that provides the focus for this research project. This study aims to examine the ongoing debate on the issue of competitive balance in interscholastic sports. That debate, framed around the idea that private schools have a distinct advantage over their public school counterparts in their ability to enroll students from outside of a fixed geographic boundary, is one that seemingly has no easy solution and needs to be studied more. This study will not only add to the limited body of scholarly research on the subject. Still, it will also provide the valuable perspective of being written by a practicing interscholastic athletic administrator who has served at private and public schools. States have taken various approaches in their attempts to solve the issue of competitive balance. The unique processes of the individual state high school associations have produced attempts to level the playing field between the public and private schools by implementing policies that include classification based on enrollment, the use of an enrollment multiplier for private schools, moving schools up in classification based on success, and, in the most extreme cases, creating separate state tournament series for public and private schools. This study looks specifically at Illinois and the Illinois High School Association's attempts to legislate equality to determine if those actions have worked to level the playing field in interscholastic sports. Using a quantitative approach and a methodology that is both historical and interpretative in nature, this study uses a significant number of primary sources, including notes and minutes from various IHSA Board of Directors, Advisory Committee, and Task Force meetings, to put into context the significance of the issue. A summary of the Brentwood decision(s) provides a foundation for a portion of this study. It supports the litigation originating from Illinois that not only adds credibility to the study but also reinforces the stature of state high school associations as state actors. Much like the attempts by the Illinois High School Association to legislate competitive balance in Illinois, this study fails to provide a magic bullet to level the playing field between the public and private schools. This study does, however, suggest that only by continuing to bring all stakeholders together can the IHSA continue to demonstrate diligence in its efforts to honor its mission of “governing the equitable participation in interscholastic athletics and activities that enrich the educational experience.”

Name thesis:degree_name

Ed.D.

Level thesis:degree_level

Dissertation

Discipline thesis:degree_discipline

Educ Policy, Orgzn & Leadrshp

Grantor

University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

Year dc:date

2024

Author dc:creator

• Hensley, Matthew

Contributors dc:contributor

• Alexander, Samuel K
• Span, Christopher
• Rice, Patrick
• Kluch, Yannick

• Competitive Balance
• Interscholastic Athletics

Statement dc:rights

• Copyright 2024 Matthew Hensley

Language dc:language

en, eng

Handle dc:identifier

https://hdl.handle.net/2142/124394

OAI record oai:identifier

https://www.ideals.illinois.edu/oai-pmh?verb=GetRecord&metadataPrefix=etdms&identifier=oai%3Awww.ideals.illinois.edu%3A2142%2F124394