Sports Programming and Scheduling

The scheduling of sports practice and competitions, whether at the pre-K-12 or postsecondary level, is largely the purview of controlling athletic organizations. Each state has a statewide association, in which membership is voluntary, that sets the policies and procedures for all extracurricular sports activity in pre-K-12 schools. For example, in Illinois, it is the Illinois High School Association (IHSA). These associations have counterparts at the collegiate level with the most well-known association being the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), which regulates everything from tournament entries to eligibility requirements for its member institutions.

For the most part, the courts have refused to become involved in evaluating whether specific policies promulgated by these voluntary athletic associations constitute state action or whether they are legally defensible. The most recent ...