Petition for Huntsville/Madison Area Catholic Schools to Join the Alabama High School Athletic Association (AHSAA)

Sounds great!

I fully support this!

A win- win for our children and continued Catholic education

I shouldn't have to sign this petition in order for my child to have the same opportunities that children at public schools and other private schools have. We should already be in the AHSAA. I support this 100%.

Long overdue and much needed.

I strongly support this effort. It will make all schools stronger.

This is so needed to advance our sports programs!!!!!

This will benefit our only high school something greatly needed.

This is a win-win situation. Our 7th and 8th graders benefit, as well as, JPII.

This is very needed for the Catholic Schools.

This is the only way for JP2 to grow and compete in High School Athletics

I desire equal opportunities for our kids. Our kids deserve the same opportunities as the public school kids. Maybe even more so, as we are paying for our children's education.

Student athletes who attend non-AHSAA Catholic middle schools have nowhere to play football after their 12th birthday, because the Catholic schools are excluded from playing the ubiquitous AHSAA-member middle school teams. That means that they can't form a team because they would have no one to play, because every other comparable school is a member of the AHSAA. This means that a Catholic student must sit out one or sometimes two years of football if they want to stay in the Catholic system. If they go to the public system to play middle school football, they are required to sit out for a year when they return to the Catholic system in high school due to the transfer rules. Student athletes should not be asked to make that type of sacrifice when there is such a great football tradition within the Catholic school system. I'm sure non-member status in the AHSAA limits other sports as well, not just football. Catholic student athletes shouldn't miss out on year(s) of development in football or any other sport because they want to pursue a Catholic education. As a result of these conditions, students are deciding to attend other schools, and the ones who stay may be disappointed by their lack of sports options. Catholic schools are missing out on good students, athletes, and families because they do not currently offer sports to the extent that student athletes and families have come to expect from other schools. Because sports are such an important and integral part of teaching confidence, leadership, skill acquisition, and life, I humbly urge the decision makers at the catholic schools to join the AHSAA, so that our kids can play sports and get a great, traditional, Catholic education. Respectfully,

Catholic school parent for 16 years and counting. This is much needed and long overdue.

So glad St. Ann signed on!

Let the kids play and make St. John Paul II Catholic High School more competitive at the challenging 5A classification.

St. Ann in Decatur has stepped up, why not Huntsville/Madison Catholic schools? This is not just about football, it's for all athletics. Most of all, it's beneficial for our children.

Please let this happen

This is long overdue!