Fool
06-19-2009, 10:44 AM
It's not a great article but the topic is good.
ANN ARBOR, MI (Michigan Radio) - What do you do when a system is said to be discriminatory, but changing it harms the people it was supposed to help? And what if the supposed victims didn't seem to want the help in the first place? That's what's happened in the debate over Michigan high school sports.
I spoke about this last year, and I've learned a lot more since - none of it good.
A little background: Eleven years ago, two Grand Rapids mothers complained that their daughters' chances for getting volleyball scholarships were hurt because Michigan played volleyball in the winter, not the fall, like every other state.
Never mind the moms had no evidence to support their claim, and they had no damages -- their daughters ultimately got scholarships under the old system . But once the wheels of justice got turning, four sports out of the 12 girls play had to change seasons. Before the dust settled, the folks at the Michigan High School Athletic Association came up with a novel idea: why not ask the girls, who would actually be affected by the changes, what they wanted?
They commissioned a survey by Western Michigan University, which found that less than a third of the girls wanted to change their seasons.
The judge didn't care, and neither did the plaintiffs. Despite an expensive and futile defense by the MHSAA, the plaintiffs' lawyers not only won the case, but six million dollars in legal fees.
It would have been more, but the judge scolded the lawyers' for padding their invoice with "vagueness, excessiveness and (duplication) in the hours billed." A high school golfer who penalizes herself when no one's watching may have more integrity than these shameless attorneys, but the lawyers have more power.
Once lawyers determine that something is legally defensible, nothing else seems to matter -- including the law of unintended consequences. High schools across the state are now struggling to find enough coaches, referees and facilities to meet the demands of running boys and girls teams in the same season. Some schools have to schedule three boys and three girls basketball teams for one gym every day- which means someone has to start practice at 10 p.m. on a school night.
Last year, the first year after the seasons changed, 3,400 Michigan girls dropped a sport - about three times more than earned scholarships.
A friend of mine has a son, who no longer has to decide between playing tennis and baseball, and a daughter, who now has to choose between tennis and softball. "On behalf of my son," he said, "I thank the plaintiffs. On behalf of my daughter, I do not." Wasn't this supposed to help girls?
Americans are the only people on earth who take school sports seriously, because we believe sports can teach things a classroom can not - like sportsmanship. The benefits of school sports are supposed to be educational, not financial. That's why they're school sports.
And that's my problem. The handful of people who pushed this were more concerned about arguing than helping, more interested in free college tuition for a few than satisfying high school sports experiences for all.
Who's looking out for the girls who just want to play?
http://www.publicbroadcasting.net/michigan/news.newsmain?action=article&ARTICLE_ID=1519674
ANN ARBOR, MI (Michigan Radio) - What do you do when a system is said to be discriminatory, but changing it harms the people it was supposed to help? And what if the supposed victims didn't seem to want the help in the first place? That's what's happened in the debate over Michigan high school sports.
I spoke about this last year, and I've learned a lot more since - none of it good.
A little background: Eleven years ago, two Grand Rapids mothers complained that their daughters' chances for getting volleyball scholarships were hurt because Michigan played volleyball in the winter, not the fall, like every other state.
Never mind the moms had no evidence to support their claim, and they had no damages -- their daughters ultimately got scholarships under the old system . But once the wheels of justice got turning, four sports out of the 12 girls play had to change seasons. Before the dust settled, the folks at the Michigan High School Athletic Association came up with a novel idea: why not ask the girls, who would actually be affected by the changes, what they wanted?
They commissioned a survey by Western Michigan University, which found that less than a third of the girls wanted to change their seasons.
The judge didn't care, and neither did the plaintiffs. Despite an expensive and futile defense by the MHSAA, the plaintiffs' lawyers not only won the case, but six million dollars in legal fees.
It would have been more, but the judge scolded the lawyers' for padding their invoice with "vagueness, excessiveness and (duplication) in the hours billed." A high school golfer who penalizes herself when no one's watching may have more integrity than these shameless attorneys, but the lawyers have more power.
Once lawyers determine that something is legally defensible, nothing else seems to matter -- including the law of unintended consequences. High schools across the state are now struggling to find enough coaches, referees and facilities to meet the demands of running boys and girls teams in the same season. Some schools have to schedule three boys and three girls basketball teams for one gym every day- which means someone has to start practice at 10 p.m. on a school night.
Last year, the first year after the seasons changed, 3,400 Michigan girls dropped a sport - about three times more than earned scholarships.
A friend of mine has a son, who no longer has to decide between playing tennis and baseball, and a daughter, who now has to choose between tennis and softball. "On behalf of my son," he said, "I thank the plaintiffs. On behalf of my daughter, I do not." Wasn't this supposed to help girls?
Americans are the only people on earth who take school sports seriously, because we believe sports can teach things a classroom can not - like sportsmanship. The benefits of school sports are supposed to be educational, not financial. That's why they're school sports.
And that's my problem. The handful of people who pushed this were more concerned about arguing than helping, more interested in free college tuition for a few than satisfying high school sports experiences for all.
Who's looking out for the girls who just want to play?
http://www.publicbroadcasting.net/michigan/news.newsmain?action=article&ARTICLE_ID=1519674