Bridging the Gap : Understanding and addressing the inequities within the Arizona High School Sports Landscape.

In high school sports, there are many socioeconomic inequalities within competition that result in blowouts and noncompetitive games. Unequal competition is not only a safety risk but demoralizing for athletes on the losing side. Athletes from low-income high schools have had less experience playing organized youth sports on average, and struggle to compete with affluent schools. Most state high school classifications fail to address this, and as a result, low-income high schools are at a disadvantage. Many successful high school sport programs are from affluent public and private high schools with a large student body that have experience playing youth sports. Football in particular, is heavily affected by socioeconomics due to the high cost of equipment and fear of injury & medical costs. An analysis was conducted on Arizona high school football programs to determine the relationship between socioeconomics measured by free/reduced lunch percentage and a team’s strength. The results showed a moderate correlation (R2 = .491) between the two variables and demonstrated the influence of socioeconomics on football team strength. A formula proposal solution was derived by using an adjusted enrollment figure, and Calpreps football ratings to determine team classification placement for the postseason. Implementation of the formula in any sport will reduce the frequency of noncompetitive games, resulting in fair and safe competition.