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BUSD to explore CIF options for high school

The Bonsall Unified School District board indicated support for Bonsall’s new high school to explore CIF Multi-School Teams Status.

The sentiments were part of a discussion item rather than a voting action during the January 9 BUSD board meeting, although the unofficial verbal support will enable BUSD superintendent Justin Cunningham to determine if Fallbrook High School or another high school with athletics would be willing to accept student-athletes from the Bonsall high school.

“We’d be interested in seeing if we can get a partner,” Cunningham said.

The CIF San Diego Section has a “Multi-School Teams Status” policy which allows athletes from certain schools to play for a specified other team. Unified team status is usually granted and renewed under one of three conditions. Ninth-graders in junior high schools which feed into the remaining high schools which start with tenth-graders can play on the high school team under the Multi-School Teams Status policy. An independent study or other specialized school (other than a continuation school) affiliated with a comprehensive public school may lead to unified status for the comprehensive and alternative schools. In 2004 the San Diego Unified School District split three existing high schools into smaller academies within those campuses and the CIF granted Multi-School Teams Status to the individual schools which made up each of those campuses.

In all three of the historical conditions, the schools in a Multi-School Teams Status agreement are in the same school district. The Bonsall district would need to utilize the athletic programs of another school district. “The other district has to be willing,” Cunningham said.

Fallbrook High School is Cunningham’s preference. “These students are part of a community. They’ve been playing sports together forever,” he said. “We don’t want to disrupt the community athletics.”

In November 2012 the voters of both the Fallbrook Union High School District and the Bonsall Union School District approved Proposition BB, which will transform the Bonsall district from a K-8 feeder district to a K-12 unified district while removing that area from the FUHSD boundaries. The actual transition will take place on July 1, 2014, although in February 2013 a transitional Bonsall Unified School District including a board identical to the elementary school board was created to handle transitional matters. The Fallbrook Union Elementary School District and the Vallecitos School District will remain as FUHSD feeder districts after the Bonsall unification process is complete.

In addition to Fallbrook High School, the Fallbrook Union High School District also includes the Ivy High School continuation program and the Oasis High School independent study program. In June 2009 the CIF Board of Managers unanimously approved a Multi-School Teams Status request allowing Oasis High School students to compete for Fallbrook High School athletic teams. That arrangement took effect with the fall 2009 seasons.

The Bonsall Unified School District initially planned to have a limited athletic offering. CIF Board of Managers approval would be needed either to add the BUSD to the CIF Board of Managers and grant CIF membership for the Bonsall high school or to grant Multi-School Teams Status.

The CIF San Diego Section Board of Managers consists of a representative from each public school district in San Diego County and Imperial County along with representatives for Catholic and non-Catholic independent schools. The most recent addition to the CIF Board of Managers was the Valley Center-Pauma Unified School District, which was created by the 2000 unification of the Valley Center and Pauma Valley elementary school districts and transferred Valley Center High School from the Escondido Union High School District to the unified district. The Jaguars participate in 25 of the 28 CIF sports with the exceptions being gymnastics, badminton (offered only in the City Conference), and roller hockey (offered only in the Metro Conference). The most recent K-8 district to obtain CIF membership was the Lakeside Union School District, whose River Valley Charter School has both junior high school and senior high school students. The Snow Leopards, whose athletic existence began in 1997-98 with girls soccer only, currently field teams in nine CIF sports. Prior to Bonsall the last K-8 district to unify and add its own high school was the Warner district, which unified in 1995 so that Warner Springs students wouldn’t need to be transported to Julian High School. The Wildcats offer five sports, including eight-man football, while Julian High School’s Eagles field 14. Warner Springs High School’s 2012-13 enrollment figures indicated 49 students from ninth through twelfth grade. The CIF did not have Multi-School Teams Status when Warner Springs High School or River Valley Charter School were granted CIF membership.

The application for Multi-School Teams Status for the 2014-15 seasons must be submitted prior to May 31.

 

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