For years, one of the biggest controversies in Arkansas high school athletics is the issue of private schools and the advantages some may have when it comes to competition. The Arkansas Activities Association has released a plan for its governing body (representatives of member schools) to vote on titled the “Competitive Equity Factor.”
If approved, the plan would create a system for private schools to move up or down a classification depending on their performance over the span of the previous four seasons. According to the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, the formula awards points to a team based on its results in a given year. A winning conference record would earn the team one point, a state playoff win is worth two points, a finals appearance would be three points, and a championship is worth four.
If a team compiles at least 10 points in a a four-year span, it would be labeled as “dominant” and move up a classification. Teams earning a maximum of two points in that same time frame would have a losing record in at least two of those four seasons, and they would move down as a “noncompetitive slide.”
Mountain Home athletic director Mitch Huskey says while he’s not sure if the Competitive Equity Factor is the way to go, he does applaud the AAA for trying to level the playing field.
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Recently, an education committee hearing was scheduled at the Arkansas State Capitol in Little Rock on House Bill 1097. The bill would have forced the AAA to create separate athletic competitions for public and private schools. The hearing was deferred after the AAA proposed the Competitive Equity Factor.
Huskey says when it comes to private schools, Arkansas is in a unique situation compared to some of its neighboring states.
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There hasn’t been any word on when the voting results from the governing body will be announced. If approved, the plan would be used in the next reclassification cycle starting in the fall of 2022.
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