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JACKSON, Miss. (AP) — Mississippi high school athletics experienced a major tremor Wednesday, almost three weeks before the start of football season.
Natchez Cathedral, St. Aloysius in Vicksburg and St. Joseph (Greenville) have left the Mississippi High School Activities Association, the state's largest governing body of high school athletics, for the Mississippi Association of Independent Schools. The moves came in response to a recent ruling by the MHSAA that upholds a ban on out-of-state students participating in athletics at private and parochial schools. The move by the three schools has sent several public schools scrambling to fill their athletic schedules.
On Tuesday, St. Aloysius applied for and was granted membership to the Mississippi Association of Independent Schools. Cathedral and St. Joseph (Greenville) were approved for membership by the MAIS on Wednesday.
"We have a commitment that every parent who sends a child to this school that they will have full access to everything we do," St. Aloysius principal Buddy Strickland said. "We regret that we had to leave. We don't leave the MHSAA with any anger, any animosity. In a perfect world we wanted to stay where we were. The fact is, we couldn't guarantee full access to all of our students."
The news of these three schools leaving for the MAIS comes a week after the MHSAA's executive committee voted to uphold a rule banning out-of-state students from participating in athletics.
An MHSAA spokesman said the organization had only heard from St. Joseph, but not from Cathedral, St. Aloysius or the Diocese.
In a statement released Wednesday, the MHSAA said: "We also recognize each school must find the best fit for its athletic and activities programs. The Executive Committee consists of 15 school administrators from across the state. The committee members felt limiting participation in MHSAA athletics and activities to students who reside in Mississippi was a matter of fairness and consistency for all of our public, parochial and private schools."
Cathedral chief administrator Pat Sanguinetti said he has not reached out to his school's former association.
"I have nothing to talk to them about," he said. "What exactly do we have to speak on?"
Per Bishop Joseph Kopacz's request, the four schools part of the Diocese of Jackson were to have met with their stakeholders this week and provide him with an input and recommendation on what was felt was in the best interests of the students.
"We looked at every option that was available to us," Strickland said. "Do you go to court and seek a legal remedy? We would not prevail in court. That was not an option. We decided to seek membership in the MAIS. With all of our stakeholders, there was not a single dissenting opinion to do anything other than what we've done."
St. Aloysius will be classified in District 3-AAA in a division with Riverfield Academy (Louisiana), Manchester Academy, Hartfield Academy, Central Hinds Academy, Park Place Christian Academy.
School starts on Aug. 7 at St. Aloysius. With the move to the MAIS happening so close to the start of the 2015-16 athletics season, Strickland said all of the Flashes coaches will meet with their staffs Friday to finalize changes to their schedules, but he does anticipate that St. Aloysius will be able to keep several of their scheduled MHSAA opponents.
"We assume and we hope that they will allow that practice to continue with us," he said. "The MHSAA has set a precedent that allows cross-organization competition between MHSAA and MAIS schools. We have been assured by the MAIS that we will be given a competitive schedule within our class in the organization."
The MAIS scheduled a transition meeting with the three schools for Friday.
"We've got to do what's best for our students," St. Joseph (Greenville) headmaster Paul Artman said. "Yes, the MAIS has been very warm and welcoming and accommodating toward us, especially with the change in the football schedule that's got to happen. They've bent over backward."
Artman was told that St. Joe would be able to play part of its non-region schedule against MHSAA schools. The Fighting Irish already have two MAIS schools on its schedule — Greenville Christian and Bayou Academy — as well as St. Joseph (Madison) and St. Aloysius.
St. Joe will be in District 1-AAA with Bayou, Indianola Academy, Kirk Academy, Lee Academy and North Delta.
Artman received confirmation that the school would be allowed to participate in the postseason immediately as well.
"That was offered on the behalf of the MAIS, and we've accepted that," he said.
Cathedral will join District 4-AAA with Adams Christian, Brookhaven Academy, Columbia Academy and Simpson Academy.
"It's going to be a headache but when you have a group of people at the MAIS who said over and over and over again that they want us and want to work with us, they're going to make sure we have all of our schedules," Sanguinetti said.
New schedules are expected to be formed by the end of the week. Outside of football, the biggest scramble will be girls' soccer and softball, which are both played in the fall in the MAIS compared with the spring in the MHSAA.
On Tuesday, MHSAA's District 5 approved a 1.5 multiplier for private and parochial schools. It was proposed by public schools to help aid with competitive equity. The proposed multiplier would multiply the attendance of each of the 13 private/parochial members by 1.5. That new number would likely bump those schools up one or two classifications, forcing them to play bigger programs.
Several states, including Alabama, have a multiplier in place. The proposal will now be voted on by the legislative counsel in October.
Artman said that raised a bigger question.
"To me that only shows how unreasonable this association is getting to be when dealing with Catholic schools," he said. "We try to be reasonable at every turn. That's all we've asked for. I don't think the Mississippi High School Activities Association has been reasonable at all. I think these wild actions coming out of that is proof.
"When you sit in this chair and in this position and what has all gone on the last three years and the relationship with the Mississippi High School Activities Association, you gain perspective. Do they want Catholic schools in the association, and I've come to the stark realization they don't. They want their own play toy, and they've certainly got it. And they can have it," he said.
Artman also said these talks did not heat up until the Fighting Irish baseball team won the 1A championship in 2013 and since St. Aloysius and Cathedral played for the 1A football championship last year.
The Diocese of Jackson confirmed that St. Joseph (Madison) is staying in the MHSAA for the 2015-16 academic year. The school did not have a meeting with its stakeholders this week due to the fact that it does not have any students affected by the MHSAA's ban of out-of-state student-athletes.
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Information from: The Clarion-Ledger, http://www.clarionledger.com
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