Pickens Rep. Helps Pass 'Tim Tebow Law'

In a ceremony on Monday afternoon, Governor Nikki Haley signed legislation that will allow students who are educated outside of the public school system to participate in extracurricular activities, provided they do not attend a private school.

Instrumental to the bill’s passage was Phil Owens (R – Pickens) who chairs the Education and Public Works Committee. “S 149 puts the interest of the child first. Not the administrators, not the school board, not the teachers,” Owens said. “I’m very happy to have been able to shepherd this through on the House side.”

The bill, (viewable here), goes into effect immediately, and it allows students who are home-schooled, attend charter schools or attend the Governor’s Schools in Greenville or Hartsville, to participate in extracurricular activities in their home district.

The bill was a long time in coming according to Owens and he understands why. “It’s human nature to resist change,” Owens said. “And when you’re the only opportunity in town, you fight to remain the only opportunity in town. Change comes slow.”

“We’ve become a more mobile society and we have to recognize that and this bill demonstrates that,” Owens said.

Formally known as the Equal Access to Interscholastic Activities Act, but referred to as the Tim Tebow Act. Tebow, the former University of Florida star, was home-schooled by his mother, and she has been one of the most vocal supporters of making extracurricular activities available to students not in the traditional classroom.

While the bill names charter school students and Governor’s School Students as beneficiaries, home-schooled students were the ones addressed most prominently by elected officials.

To that end, Haley signed the bill at Midlands Home School Resource Center in Lexington before dozens of students, teachers and parents who crammed into a tiny room with members of the media, while another large group of students waited outside for the ceremony to end and get a picture with the governor.

South Carolina joins 29 other states with similar legislation on the books. Haley said she believed the bill came to fruition due to the persistence of parents and children who argued their case to their state representatives and helped the “planets align” after so many years of similar bills dying in committee.

State Superintendent Mick Zais said the bill will have a deeper impact than just improving sports teams and clubs. “The home-school parents pay school taxes just like everyone else and they want to see the local school excel,” Zais said. “The bill strengthens the bond between the school and the community.”

Haley echoed Zais sentiment. “This bill makes communities stronger,” she said. “We’ll see parents who can now make decisions that are in the best interests of their children and don’t have to choose between school and sports or band.”

“You only get one chance to educate your child,” Owens said. “And at the end of that 12 years you don’t want to have missed any opportunities as a parent to help you child. That’s what this bill is about.”

Architects of the bill said they worked closely with the South Carolina High School League (SCHSL) to prevent manipulation of the new law. The SCHSL was instrumental in adding a provision that requires students to be home-schooled or at their new school for at least one year before participating in extracurricular activities. This provision would prevent students switching educational institutions simply for extracurricular activities.

Though the bill is now law, some districts are still in the process of trying to determine what exactly constitutes an extracurricular activity. Both Owens and Zais said they will begin work immediately on a definition that will eliminate any confusion.