The polarizing political climate in the country has started to directly impact students, teachers and families within the Tahoe Truckee Unified School District (TTUSD).
TTUSD Superintendent Kerstin Kramer announced to families and staff on May 2 that “TTUSD High Schools will transition our interscholastic athletics affiliation from the Nevada Interscholastic Activities Association (NIAA) to the California Interscholastic Federation (CIF).” This will be effective at the start of the 2025/2026 school year. The change will affect both Truckee High School and North Tahoe High School.
Changes by the NIAA forced TTUSD to make a change due to California State Law. In early April, the state of Nevada reversed a policy that was set in 2014 regarding transgender students and their ability to play for teams that align with their gender identity, according to AP News. During the vote to enact changes, “the NIAA voted to ban transgender girls from playing girls sports. Athletes on girls teams will have to prove their sex assigned at birth if a school raises a claim that they are transgender,” according to the Reno Gazette Journal.
The reversal and changes to law directly conflict with California Law, like AB 1995, which guarantees students’ rights to privacy and protects them from discrimination.
Under the new “NIAA Student Eligibility and Participation Position Statement” policy that “limits students to playing sports that align with the sex listed on their ‘unaltered original birth certificate.’” The policy document goes as far as outlining the definitions of boy, girl, male, female and sex.
On Monday May 5th 2025, Superintendent Kramer sent the district statement regarding the changes. Many families and students have many questions regarding the changes and the lack of opportunity for community input. Kramer wrote, “… In this instance, the district’s obligation to comply with California state law, particularly regarding non-discrimination and student rights, presented a situation with no latitude for alternative action. Because the NIAA’s rules conflicted with California law, we had a clear legal duty to switch to CIF, a necessary step in ensuring we are fulfilling our fundamental responsibilities as a California school district.”
The repercussions and the impact of the change is large because of the population of student-athletes within the schools. Nearly 90% of the students at THS are athletes, and participate in sports.
On Wednesday May 7th 2025 at 5:30 pm there will be a school board meeting held, and a large crowd is expected to attend. The meeting can be watched through Tahoe Truckee Media live streaming at https://youtube.com/live/ms7RwhUHS1Q?feature=share. There will be an opportunity to make public comments. TTUSD also has a FAQ page for any further information.
