Will SBISD appeal UIL realignment?

Yes. SBISD believes strongly that all four of its secondary schools – Memorial, Northbrook, Spring Woods and Stratford – should remain together in one district. We are also concerned about travel considerations.

Why would any of our schools be moved into a 4A Conference? 

Every two years the UIL realigns its competitive districts into 5 conferences. The conferences are determined by school size. The ranges for 2008-2009 and 2009-2010 are:

Conference 5A                         2,085 students or more
Conference 4A                         980 to 2084
Conference 3A                         430 to 979
Conference 2A                         200 to 429
Conference 1A                         199 or below

On Oct. 26, 2007, school districts were required to report their enrollment to the state of Texas. On that day, SBISD reported the following enrollments:

Stratford               2056         
Spring Woods     2117           
Northbrook          2129           
Memorial              2292           

These enrollment numbers must include students attending other SBISD secondary schools, such as Westchester Academy for International Studies (WAIS) and School of Choice (SOC), that don’t provide competitive athletics. As a result, Stratford High’s enrollment fell below the Conference 5A cutoff.

Are we still able to play other Spring Branch schools?

Yes, schools who are not in the same conferences or districts can schedule games against each other in “non-district” contests. SBISD schools have agreed to maintain longtime rivalries, such as Stratford and Memorial and Spring Woods and Northbroook.

 What will be the effect on athletic and performing arts programs at a school that is moved into Conference 4A? 

The same athletics and performing arts programs and competitions are provided for 4A and 5A schools. Therefore, there will be no change in what programs are offered, only who the competition is against.

When will these changes take affect?

During the 2008-2009 school year.

What schools would we compete against under the UIL realignment?

Under the UIL realignment plan, Memorial, Northbrook and Spring Woods high schools will remain in Conference 5A, but move to District 18 where they will compete with three Alief ISD high schools – Alief Elsik, Alief Taylor and Alief Hastings – and private school Strake Jesuit.

UIL, meanwhile, has moved Stratford High to Conference 4A, District 23, where the high school will compete against three Lamar ISD schools – Richmond Foster, Lamar Consolidated and Terry – as well as Bay City and El Campo high schools.

posted 02-01-08