Florida Senate - 2025 CS for CS for SB 248
By the Committees on Judiciary; and Education Pre-K - 12; and
Senator Simon
590-02600-25 2025248c2
1 A bill to be entitled
2 An act relating to student participation in
3 interscholastic and intrascholastic extracurricular
4 sports; amending s. 1006.15, F.S.; providing that an
5 activity or a sport must meet specified requirements;
6 specifying conditions for a home education student to
7 participate in interscholastic athletics; revising the
8 criteria a private school student must meet to
9 participate in a sport at a Florida High School
10 Athletic Association (FHSAA) member school; deleting a
11 provision limiting which non-FHSAA member private
12 school students are eligible to participate in FHSAA
13 sports; providing an effective date.
14
15 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
16
17 Section 1. Subsection (2), paragraph (c) of subsection (3),
18 and paragraphs (a), (e), and (g) of subsection (8) of section
19 1006.15, Florida Statutes, are amended to read:
20 1006.15 Student standards for participation in
21 interscholastic and intrascholastic extracurricular student
22 activities; regulation.—
23 (2) Interscholastic extracurricular student activities are
24 an important complement to the academic curriculum.
25 Participation in a comprehensive extracurricular and academic
26 program contributes to student development of the social and
27 intellectual skills necessary to become a well-rounded adult. As
28 used in this section, the term “extracurricular” means any
29 school-authorized or education-related activity occurring during
30 or outside the regular instructional school day. In the
31 determination of whether a school offers an activity or a sport,
32 the activity or sport must meet the designation requirements of
33 s. 1006.205(3)(a).
34 (3)
35 (c)1. An individual home education student is eligible to
36 participate at the public school to which the student would be
37 assigned according to district school board attendance area
38 policies or which the student could choose to attend pursuant to
39 s. 1002.31, or may develop an agreement to participate at a
40 private school, in the interscholastic extracurricular
41 activities of that school, provided the following conditions are
42 met:
43 a.1. The home education student must meet the requirements
44 of the home education program pursuant to s. 1002.41.
45 b.2. During the period of participation at a school, the
46 home education student must demonstrate educational progress as
47 required in paragraph (b) in all subjects taken in the home
48 education program by a method of evaluation agreed upon by the
49 parent and the school principal which may include: review of the
50 student’s work by a certified teacher chosen by the parent;
51 grades earned through correspondence; grades earned in courses
52 taken at a Florida College System institution, university, or
53 trade school; standardized test scores above the 35th
54 percentile; or any other method designated in s. 1002.41.
55 c.3. The home education student must meet the same
56 residency requirements as other students in the school at which
57 he or she participates.
58 d.4. The home education student must meet the same
59 standards of acceptance, behavior, and performance as required
60 of other students in extracurricular activities.
61 e.5. The student must register with the school his or her
62 intent to participate in interscholastic extracurricular
63 activities as a representative of the school before
64 participation. A home education student must be able to
65 participate in curricular activities if that is a requirement
66 for an extracurricular activity.
67 f.6. A student who transfers from a home education program
68 to a public school before or during the first grading period of
69 the school year is academically eligible to participate in
70 interscholastic extracurricular activities during the first
71 grading period provided the student has a successful evaluation
72 from the previous school year, pursuant to sub-subparagraph b.
73 subparagraph 2.
74 g.7. Any public school or private school student who has
75 been unable to maintain academic eligibility for participation
76 in interscholastic extracurricular activities is ineligible to
77 participate in such activities as a home education student until
78 the student has successfully completed one grading period in
79 home education pursuant to sub-subparagraph b. subparagraph 2.
80 to become eligible to participate as a home education student.
81 2. An individual home education student is eligible to
82 participate on an interscholastic athletic team at any public
83 school in the school district in which the student resides,
84 provided the student meets the conditions specified in sub
85 subparagraphs a. through g.
86 (8)(a) The Florida High School Athletic Association (FHSAA)
87 shall, in cooperation with each district school board and its
88 member private schools, facilitate a program in which a middle
89 school or high school student who attends a private school is
90 eligible to participate in an interscholastic or intrascholastic
91 sport at a member public high school, a member public middle
92 school, a member 6-12 public school, or a member private school,
93 as appropriate for the private school student’s grade level, if:
94 1. The private school in which the student is enrolled is
95 not a member of the FHSAA or the private school in which the
96 student is enrolled is a member of the FHSAA and does not offer
97 the sport in which the student wishes to participate.
98 2. The private school student meets the guidelines for the
99 conduct of the program established by the FHSAA’s board of
100 directors and the district school board or member private
101 school. At a minimum, such guidelines must provide a deadline
102 for each sport by which the private school student’s parents
103 must register with the member school in writing their intent for
104 their child to participate at that school in the sport.
105 (e) Any non-FHSAA member private school that has a student
106 who wishes to participate in this program must make all student
107 records, including, but not limited to, academic, financial,
108 disciplinary, and attendance records, available upon request of
109 the FHSAA.
110 (g) Only students who are enrolled in non-FHSAA member
111 private schools consisting of 200 students or fewer are eligible
112 to participate in the program in any given academic year.
113 Section 2. This act shall take effect July 1, 2025.