Alice ISD and Corpus Christi Cal Allen ISD plan to appeal UIL District 29-5A Realignment

By: Ricardo E. Calderon, Eagle Pass Business Journal, Inc., Copyright 2016

According to Corpus Christi news reports, both Alice Independent School District and Corpus Christi Cal Allen Independent School District plan to appeal the Texas University Interscholastic League (UIL) 2016-2018 realignment of their high schools in District 29-5A announced on Monday, February 1, 2016 by UIL.

Both Alice and Cal Allen raised concerns regarding the long travel distances and travel times between District 29-5A schools as well as significant financial costs to be incurred as a result of the long traveling distances, causing budgetary constraints upon their districts.

The newly realigned District 29-5A for 2016-2018 include Alice, Corpus Christi Cal Allen, Eagle Pass C. C. Winn, San Antonio Harlandale, San Antonio McCollum, San Antonio Southside, Floresville, and Uvalde high schools.

School Districts have 10 days after February 1, 2016 to file an appeal with UIL concerning any objections to  their district alignment.  Alice and Corpus Christi Cal Allen have announced they plan to file their appeals within the 10 days deadline.

According to Mapquest, the distance between Eagle Pass, Texas and Corpus Christi, Texas is 249.3 miles and would take 4 hours and 3 minutes to travel one way, while the distance from Eagle Pass to Alice, Texas is 181.6 miles and would take 3 hours and 9 minutes of travel one way.  Alice ISD and Corpus Christi Cal Allen ISD raised concerns that the long distances between schools would also cause students to return from out of town trips in the early morning and have to attend classes early in the morning that same day, affecting student-atheletes academic studies and overall health.

The new District 29-5A schools are scheduled to meet on Tuesday, February 2, 2016 at Floresville High School in Floresville, Texas to discuss Alice and Corpus Christi Cal Allen’s appeals to be allowed to withdraw from District 29-5A and be reassigned to another 5A district closer to their cities as well as develop the new schedules for 2016-2017 school year and other district business.

C. C. Winn High School Athletic Coordinator and Head Football Coach Eric Villasenor in an exclusive interview with the Eagle Pass Business Journal stated that Eagle Pass Independent School District does not plan to oppose Alice and Cal Allen’s appeals.  Villasenor noted that if all of the District 29-5A schools unanimously agree not to object to Alice and Cal Allen’s appeals, the two schools would be allowed to withdraw from District 29-5A and request UIL to align them in a new district.  But if one school should object to Alice and Cal Allen’s appeals, then the two schools would have to appeal to the UIL Executive Committee in Austin, Texas.

The final composition of District 29-5A may be resolved February 2nd at Floresville or take a few weeks longer should Alice and Cal Allen need to appeal to the UIL Executive Committee in Austin, Texas.