Petition organizer: George Roberts, Colorado parent.

To the Colorado High School Activities Association (CHSAA), its Legislative Council, and its Classification and League Organization Committee:

We, the undersigned, call for separate public-school and private-school postseason tournaments and state championships in Colorado high school sports, with enrollment-based classifications within each division. Voluntary public-versus-private regular-season competition must remain available every season.

THE REPORTED FACTS

Colorado Preps reported before CHSAA's September 2025 classification vote that CHSAA's analysis of championships won since 2020 showed:

• Private schools represented approximately 10% of CHSAA membership but won more than 20% of state championships.
• In Class 3A, private schools represented 9.63% of membership and won 35% of championships.

THE MATH

Statewide, private schools' reported championship share was more than twice their approximate membership share. In 3A, 35 divided by 9.63 equals approximately 3.63: private schools' championship share was 3.63 times their membership share. The remaining 90.37% of schools accounted for 65% of titles.

Source: Colorado Preps, “Multiplicity: Looming vote puts public and private schools at odds,” reporting on CHSAA's analysis before the September 2025 vote:
https://coloradopreps.com/multiplicity-looming-vote-puts-public-and-private-schools-at-odds/

These are reported multi-year aggregate figures, not a year-by-year audit or a measurement of any individual athlete's probability of winning. They describe results before implementation of the 2026–28 classification cycle.

WHAT THE FACTS MEAN

The reported championship distribution is substantially disproportionate to school membership, particularly in 3A. This is a reason to examine whether schools of similar enrollment are competing under sufficiently comparable conditions. Enrollment measures school size; it does not by itself measure differences in admissions, enrollment controls, resources, or access to prospective students.

The figures do not establish recruiting violations or prove which factors caused the disparity. Our conclusion is a policy judgment: separate championship pathways offer a clear structural response while preserving opportunities for public and private athletes to compete against one another during the regular season. Both groups deserve meaningful championship competition within their respective divisions.

WE REQUEST THAT CHSAA:

1. Establish a private-school championship division covering all member private schools, including religious and independent schools. Set enrollment-based classifications within that division for each sport, using the number of participating schools to establish viable groups.

2. Maintain a public-school championship division, including public charter schools, under an enrollment-based classification framework with published sport-specific enrollment ranges and transparent placement and appeal procedures.

3. Keep postseason qualification, brackets, and state championships separate. Clearly identify each title as a public-school or private-school championship. Preserve voluntary cross-division regular-season games every season, subject to ordinary scheduling and safety rules.

4. Require meaningful oversight of athletic recruiting and enrollment practices across all public schools, including charter, magnet, choice, and other open-enrollment programs. Provide confidential reporting, review credible complaints, audit compliance when warranted, and publish findings and enforcement outcomes while protecting student privacy. Apply consistent consequences to verified violations.

5. Publish an annual championship report showing public and private title counts, participating-school counts, and championship shares by sport and classification. Distinguish traditional public and charter schools in the analysis without treating either category's success as proof of misconduct. Report results before and after classification changes separately.

6. Publish a sport-by-sport implementation plan addressing rural travel, scheduling, costs, small participation pools, cooperative teams, and individual athletes. Use viable enrollment groupings within the private division rather than automatically duplicating every public classification.

7. Bring the proposal to the Legislative Council for a recorded vote after public comment. Publish the rules and effective date before the affected classification cycle. Review results after two cycles using participation, competitive margins, championship concentration, travel costs, and missed school time.

We respect the accomplishments of athletes and coaches at every school. We ask CHSAA to adopt clearly defined championship divisions that recognize different school structures while preserving competition, participation, and opportunities for all students.

By signing, we support separate public-school and private-school state championships, enrollment classifications within each division, continued voluntary public-versus-private regular-season competition, and transparent oversight.