UIL, TAPPS cancels all remaining spring activities

After Governor Greg Abbott announced that all Texas schools are to remain closed to in-person learning for the remainder of the school year, both the University Interscholastic League (UIL) and the Texas Association of Private and Parochial Schools (TAPPS) announced the cancelation and conclusion of all remaining spring activities and state championships.

“Our staff had been working hard on plans to resume activities this spring, but without schools in session, interscholastic activities cannot continue,” said UIL Executive Director Dr. Charles Breithaupt in a press release. “Our highest priority during this challenging time is ensuring the health and safety of our students and communities and making progress in the containment of COVID-19 in Texas. We are now turning our attention to the 2020-2021 school year.”

TAPPS Executive Director Bryan Bunselmeyer also released a statement, writing “in keeping with this order and the health interests of all involved, TAPPS moves to the conclusion of our spring activities.”

“The TAPPS leadership will continue our development of guidelines and parameters for our return to activities over the summer months and into the fall of 2020,” he continued. “We will share those plans in the next few weeks through webinars, Rank One notifications and posts on the TAPPS website, www.tapps.biz.”

Around the area, Gonzales, Nixon-Smiley, Waelder, Luling and Shiner compete in the UIL. Shiner St. Paul competes in TAPPS.

UIL announced that all previously communicated information allowing remote instruction remains in place. 

“I am grateful to the UIL staff for their leadership and dedication to students,” said UIL Legislative Council Chair Curtis Rhodes in the press release. “Together we will get through this and we look forward to the day students are once again able to participate in education-based interscholastic activities.”