Boo to KHSD's travel limitations on student teams
The Kern High School District's recent decree banning students from most out-of-town competitions of more than 150 miles' distance doesn't make much sense.
The new policy is apparently intended to limit potential liability claims. But the district faces potential liability issues whether students are traveling five miles or 500 miles. Whether it's an injury at an athletic event, travel to or from a competition, or after-hours mischief, liability issues are almost as likely to emerge at one of the district's 18 campuses as they are on the road.
The problem that undoubtedly inspired this decision -- the case of the Stockdale High School freshman who was enveloped in duct tape and plastic wrap by student pranksters while at an out-of-town debate tournament in 2006 (the case only came to light following news of the 2009 settlement) -- could just as easily have happened in Los Angeles (120 miles away and within the district's "OK zone") as in Stockton. For every rare occasion in which students are punished for transgressions away from home, hundreds of other educational and resume-building trips take place without incident.
Some taxpayers will applaud the apparent show of frugality on the school board's part, but many members of these teams, from cheerleading squads to Future Farmers, pay all or a portion of their own way -- and the fundraising experience adds to the overall lesson. It's a shame that one high-profile insurance payout has prompted the KHSD board to penalize thousands of students. We urge district officials to reconsider.
