[kidlexington]

Public schools are to provide a free education. Is athletics a part of that? As a parent, I have paid for pictures, caps and gowns, 8th grade and senior trips, etc. is athletics any different?

A great question, and the answer is YES, athletics are different. As important as those things you mention are to many students, none has the power to keep a marginal student in school the way athletics does. Many policies done for other reasons, policies like transfer rules, grade restrictions, and athletic fees, work against the worthwhile goals of keeping the kid around to graduate, work towards goals, work with teammates, and develop confidence.