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Educating the Student Body
FIGURE 6-6
Participation in interscholastic sports among boys and girls by availability of 
sports facilities, 2009-2011.
SOURCE: Colabianchi et al., 2012. 
Figure 6-6.eps
0.0
5.0
10.0
15.0
20.0
25.0
40.0
30.0
8th Grade
24.1
31.4
34.8
24.5
32.4
29.7
24.4
31.1
32.9
10th Grade
12th Grade
P
ercentage
Low Facilities
Moderate Facilities
High Facilities
35.0
that the percentage of students participating in interscholastic sports is con-
tingent on the type and number of facilities (see Figure 6-6).
Another challenge to implementing quality sports programs is the avail-
ability of quality coaches. Fewer school personnel are coaching in the face 
of a decline in coaching supplements and increased time commitments. 
Funding for staffing or staff training is an important aspect of successful 
sports or after-school physical activity programs. According to the 2006 
SHPPS data, more than half of schools surveyed paid staff for involve-
ment in intramural sports programs (Lee et al., 2007). Policies to support 
supervisory staff can facilitate increased opportunities for physical activity 
for students.
Constrained budgets also have reduced the number of sports offer-
ings, with the primary sports being retained and the second-tier sports, 
such as golf and tennis, either being eliminated or requiring that students 
pay 100 percent of the cost of participation. Indeed, many school districts 
across the United States have implemented a pay-to-play policy. According 
to the 2006 SHPPS data, 33 percent of schools require students to pay to