Atlanta and Metro Priavte Schools - Unfair and Uneven Playing Field

[HIGH COUNTRY]

This is a decades old problem, changing the enrollment factor as the GHSA did last year, and kicking the affluent privates up to a higher classificiaton does not work.

Examples:

Mt Paran baseball - Just beat a very good Jeff Davis team, MP although only 1100 students K-12 had FOUR (4) division one senior pitchers ( Ga Tech, Miss State, and Georgia) plus other D1 commits, plus other college level commits on team. Come on guys, this isnt normal. Most rural south ga teams may get a D1 pitcher every 15 to twenty years, if they are lucky. And they had FOUR seniors D1 in one year.

Unrstricted recruiting, affluent schools that most parents (maybe not the atheletes) poay up to 409 K a year for tuition, they have private coaches, national travel teams, etc. 95% of most Atlanta private schools enrollment is out of area, especially the athletes.

GHSA needs to wake up and quit catering to private schools, mind you - These are not the small south ga private schools that we have in our area, but somthing totally different.

The only solution is that they need to have their own private school playoff format.

If all the stars line up exactly, rural schools sometimes can compete and even win - but the results due to the stacked cards will favor the affluent privates most of the time.

Pace Academy won 4A mens basketball second year in a row, Pace will win both boys and girls tennis, Prince Avenue won class A football over a very good Swainsboro team that beat a very good Irwin team (by alot of points too).

I am sure Mr Paran will play North Cobb Christian in the AA baseball finals this year.

And the list goes on and on, the dominance by the alluent privates continues especially in the niche non football sports and will continue until the GHSA quits kicking the ball down the road and deal with the core issue!

I will again this year write to mulitiple state reps in the legislature , there has to be a grassroots response to the failur of GHSa to right a decases old wrong!

This is a travesty - GHSA needs to wake up!!!

 

[HIGH COUNTRY]

typo sorry meant to type 40 K per year tuition (assuming maybe if their atheletes actually pay anything). And south ga coaches get nailed for recruiting very harshly, sounds like money talks and there are two sets of rules - one for afluent private schools and one for rural county schools especially in south and middle georgia... This is not a new thing, it has been going on for decades. My son ran into it twice in high school with tenni approx twenty years ago...

 

[1john4:4]

Prince Avenue softball stacked with talented players from Morgan to Cobb county playing single A public teams who are lucky to have 2-3 good players on the entire roster.

 

[HIGH COUNTRY]

I know and admit its personal with me, both my son and grandson have run into it - I cant belive more people do not see the inequity and speak up to right a wrong.

I am convinced that they likely had the best public school in class AA this baseball season, and probably again next year - but how do you compete against a recruited team of national travel ball with 4 D1 senior pitchers - that aint normal (not to count the other Dq and other college level talent on the team.

"Our kids have been together since age 5 or 6, they are from one rural south georgia county (12,000 county 4,000 in town). Most are not affluent, most have not played any kind of travel ball. Yet they progressed together, learned to play as a team and had the benefit of a good county rec department as a feeder program (yes thats right NO travel ball, but only two or three on team got to play a little summer travel ball)".

No private coaching, yet they played them very competitively 2-0 and 2-0. It would have taken all the stars in the universe lining up perfectly to pull a two out of three game upset.

I will do my part, but my grandson will be long graduated before any meaninful change is implemented. Metter has won the Class A baseball i think two years in a row, make you a bet it will be a private school this year now that they do not have their own playoff bracket with the change in class A (up to this year, class A privates had their own playoff bracket)...

 

[kmckinnie]

They have lowered the learning curve in public schools to. That’s what I would be concerned with.
The private school a student acts the fool gets kicked out. And as far as the sports go. The private with good grades and sports probably have a better chance at scholarships.
The public not as much pay for a teacher or coach I bet. The private hires better with better pay.

It is what it is.

 

[basshappy]

Where I went to HS our school was accused of recruiting and how unfair it was. This was back in late '80s and early '90s. It was a private all male school maybe 150 students per grades 9-12.

At first, late '80s, people supported our programs because we were the underdogs in a few sports, climbing up the state placings. But by early '90s the support swayed to how unfair etc. because we started winning state titles in multiple sports year after year. Then we started winning national championships.

It wasn't recruiting in the sport I competed in. It was simply natural progression. The overwhelming majority of us on our squad grew up together training and traveling the USA as a team. By the time we entered 9th grade we had known one another since early grades cool. We had spent our weekends together in vans and hotels traveling to compete in tournaments. Our coach in our youth had become the coach at this high school so it was natural for most of us to follow him there and continue to compete under him. And our squad came from very diverse backgrounds in terms of race, income and education. We couldn't have been more of a rag tag collection of boys and coaches. LOL. But we all loved our sport and our parents had sacrificed and supported us for so many years. And as we became dominant in our sports other driven athletes enrolled in the school to become part of something they wanted and had worked hard for.

I don't know the factors and dynamics at play for baseball in GA that you are referencing, but there may be some of what I experienced, where the boys have competed and traveled together since youth and it is a natural progression to the school?

Separately I have 4 children and I have had them avoid the public schools in Dekalb County like the plague. Education, behavior, class size, lack of good parenting, lack of administration and staff who can do what they need to do in order to make the classroom a success, these are all factors for me as to why I have done everything I can to get them in private schools. Each of the private schools also have issues, but the issues are less severe and less frequent. They are the lesser of evils.

 

[MudDucker]

The world isn't fair.

 

[bullgator]

Money talks, learn the language.

 

[Dean]

Agreed, it's a competitive issue, but has been this way for a good long while. In addition, every school district (county) can and typically does have different criteria for what a 'local' school is; for example one county can be zoned to student enrollment based on busing, address/living location etc.., next county over - but same classification/region as the neighbor county school can have public "magnet" schools - and students decide without zone considerations where to attend. This is not private, but public. Then you get schools historically strong athletically only in one sport, while neighboring schools are stronger in another. "Neighborhood" schools, and school zones only applies to some counties, point being -it is not only private schools that 'recruit'. And just my opinion, don't really see it changing. Talked to a Dad from a school located down in Florida (not IMG) during a high-school baseball tournament, team stacked with D1's - I asked him, "where is your schools campus?" ... long story short, no campus - no school buildings - all online virtual classes - basically a recruited high school baseball team playing as a high school team competing against regular brick and mortar high schools.

 

[ryanh487]

Mt. Paran graduate myself. Maybe poor kids just need to practice harder. Not all of us that went to private schools come from wealthy families, my dad made huge sacrifices to keep me there for the best environment and education possible. I was on track to be a heck of a baseball player until they started scheduling games and practices on weekends during hunting season. I quit so I could spend my time in the woods.

 

[Jim Baker]

I have a solution. Ban all HS sports and teach them readin', writin' and rithmatic.

 

[ryanh487]

I have a solution. Ban all HS sports and teach them readin', writin' and rithmatic.

Maybe if public school did a better job of it so many good athletes wouldn't be attending private schools instead

 

[Ruger#3]

So I’m clear on this, I‘m required by law to pay taxes to support failed public schools. If I pay private tuition along with my school taxes and my kid succeeds in academics and sports I’m the one with the problem.

 

[elfiii]

The world isn't fair.

Say it ain't so Joe.

 

[HIGH COUNTRY]

Metro and north Atlanta privates just need to compete in their own playoff bracket and that would solve it - In my personal opinion that is the only way to fix the issue (I am referring only to athletic side of it, agree with valid points on education and other issues that are present in some especially urban public schools).

I have a family full of public school educators but I completed HS in a small south ga private as well as other family members, my granddaughter will likely attend St. Pius as well - So I respect and see pros and cons of both school systems from academic and yes urban publics do have their fair share of other societal issues)..

Bottom line from strictly an athletics debate, the formula to inflate the out of area enrollment (95%) in most metro and north atlanta privates, has been changed multiple times over the past decades to "level the playing field" and it doesnt work. In a few weeks, just look at the playoff representation and winners by large affluent privates.

The dominance by metro and north atlanta privates in high school sports will likely continue this year following reclassification - It will no doubt continue to be a sensitive and emotional issue for those that have a stake in the game, and for the GHSA... It is also political...

Quite possibly, Irwin county baseball will play Prince Avenue from Athens in two weeks for the class A state championship - I hope Irwin kicks their butts (I have two cousins on the Irwin team)!

I predict in five years, that privates will play in their own bracket for state playoffs - I could be wrong though, been at least a few times before...

There are at least two camps on this issue, maybe more- Everyone has a right to their opinion. I aint changing mine not on this one...

 

[basshappy]

If nothing else the current playing field in HS at least prepares many athletes for the reality of college and professional - where money talks, life isn't fair, athletes tend to gravitate toward good programs / coaches, etc. No need to give HS athletes a participation ribbon and say we are all equal. They'd really get a rough go at it beyond HS then if that were the case.

 

[ryanh487]

Why should private school athletes be penalized with their opportunity for opponents? Baseball is baseball. Athletics are skills. You don't need money or fancy equipment to build athletic skills. Travel ball is not restricted to private schools, either. My step brother and several friends played travel leagues while going to public school. The fact is for most KIDS, which is what high school players are, KIDS, baseball is just a game that they enjoy. Stop putting pressure on KIDS to fulfill your major league fantasies on their behalf.

 

[kmckinnie]

Play BALL !

 

[elfiii]

Metro and north Atlanta privates just need to compete in their own playoff bracket and that would solve it - In my personal opinion that is the only way to fix the issue (I am referring only to athletic side of it, agree with valid points on education and other issues that are present in some especially urban public schools).

I have a family full of public school educators but I completed HS in a small south ga private as well as other family members, my granddaughter will likely attend St. Pius as well - So I respect and see pros and cons of both school systems from academic and yes urban publics do have their fair share of other societal issues)..

Bottom line from strictly an athletics debate, the formula to inflate the out of area enrollment (95%) in most metro and north atlanta privates, has been changed multiple times over the past decades to "level the playing field" and it doesnt work. In a few weeks, just look at the playoff representation and winners by large affluent privates.

The dominance by metro and north atlanta privates in high school sports will likely continue this year following reclassification - It will no doubt continue to be a sensitive and emotional issue for those that have a stake in the game, and for the GHSA... It is also political...

Quite possibly, Irwin county baseball will play Prince Avenue from Athens in two weeks for the class A state championship - I hope Irwin kicks their butts (I have two cousins on the Irwin team)!

I predict in five years, that privates will play in their own bracket for state playoffs - I could be wrong though, been at least a few times before...

There are at least two camps on this issue, maybe more- Everyone has a right to their opinion. I aint changing mine not on this one...

I went to Marist and I come from the time when no private schools in the state were in the running for any state championships in the Big 3 and that professional team from Valdosta was slated to walk away with the foobaw state championship every year so I'm having a hard time having much sympathy for the public school folks. Y'all dominated high school sports since the beginning of time.

Private schools are still at a disadvantage because no matter how good your kid is you got to pay full boat tuition to send them to a private school whereas public school standouts just walk on the field, no extra charge. Private schools have to compete and offer a good program or those standout athletes are going somewhere else.

When it comes to college foobaw it's dominated with public school talent. Sure there's the every now and then Westminster kid who is a monster but I'd be willing to bet at the college level the split between public school talent and private school talent is probably 80/20 and maybe more than that.

Team sports at every level has become big bidness with Aunt Mammy Bammy Big Money calling the shots (a little Uncle Remus lingo for ya). Which team wins championships and which team loses at the high school level is pretty much inconsequential because putting 100,000 screamin butts in the stands in Athens on Saturday requires Aunt Mammy Bammy Big Money. It's the same for Auburn and Tuscaloosa as well.

Bottom line - root hog root.

 

[ddavis1120]

Can I get some cheese to go with all this whine?

What are there, eight different classifications for the big three now and apparently that isn't enough?

I grew up in Northwest Georgia and yes Darlington would recruit kids. But Dalton City Schools were way worse. I assume the big public programs are still way worse than the private schools.

Do you think Colquitt County recruited? And the administration basically condoned it because they hired Rush Propst. The man had to wear a hat and long tailed jacket all the time to keep his horns and tail covered up. But give the devil his due, he could coach high school football.....and recruit some great football players.