The Issue- Why This Petition Matters

Pennsylvania Senate Bill 589, introduced by Senator Dush on April 9, 2025, would amend the act of March 10, 1949 (P.L. 30, No. 14) by allowing a board of school directors to permit students to satisfy physical education requirements, and components of the PA Academic Standards of Health, Safety, and Physical Education, by participating in interscholastic athletics.  SHAPE PA would like to present a signed petition to support quality physical education by opposing SB 589. Now more than ever, we need teachers, parents, students, and stakeholders to sign the following petition to oppose this bill. We are seeking a minimum of 1,500 signatures by May 12, 2025 to show strong support for quality physical education.

Petition

We, the undersigned, oppose Pennsylvania Senate Bill 589 of session 2025. This bill would allow a board of school directors to develop or revise a policy to permit students to satisfy physical education requirements, and components of the PA Academic Standards for Health, Safety, and
Physical Education, by participating in interscholastic athletics. This bill could limit the students’ physical activity experiences to a few sports, depriving them of instruction in many lifetime wellness activities or exercises that can be used throughout adulthood. Missing instruction in
many high school level physical education concepts would impact their ability to develop an individualized physical activity plan, which would negatively impact their future quality of life.  Instruction and assessment in these high school level concepts contained in the physical
education standards must be delivered by a certified physical education teacher at the secondary level. Coaches who do not hold proper teaching certification are not qualified to provide instruction and assessment in any components of the PA Academic Standards of Health, Safety and Physical Education (Title 24 Pennsylvania Statute Section 12-1202). Allowing
a person lacking the proper certification to instruct high school physical education violates this statute and undermines the value of teachers certified in health and physical education.  Physical education is a mandatory course and a graduation requirement. PDE’s Health and
Physical Education webpage states that it is not permissible to waive requirements of Health and Physical Education due to participation in interscholastic sports. Extra-curricular activities, such as interscholastic athletics, are not equivalent nor interchangeable with physical education
curriculum. Assuming sports are interchangeable with physical education devalues the content area and may deter college education majors from selecting this field as a major, adding to the
teacher shortage crisis.  Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic Association’s (PIAA) board has opposed counting interscholastic athletics as physical education and states that students should participate in
physical education class.

We choose to protect physical education in Pennsylvania by opposing SB 589.