Charles County Public Schools has rolled out a set of cost-saving changes to high school athletics this school year, tightening rules on team travel and eliminating freshman basketball as the district looks for what it describes as more consistent use of athletics funding while trying to keep programs strong. High school athletic directors and administrators were notified of the changes.
Under the new rules, CCPS has capped scrimmages at two per season for every sports team, a move the district says will cut down on transportation costs tied to team travel.
The district has also drawn a hard line on how far it will pay to send teams: athletic contests and events must now be scheduled within a 50-mile radius of the home school for CCPS to cover student transportation. Trips beyond that radius become the responsibility of the individual high school, not the district.
That radius rule does not apply to games in the Southern Maryland Athletic Conference or playoff competitions run by the Maryland Public Secondary Schools Athletic Association, which remain fully covered regardless of distance.
Golf and swim teams get a partial carve-out: CCPS will still transport those athletes from school to practice sites, but parents and guardians are now responsible for getting them home afterward.
The most significant roster-level change is the elimination of freshman basketball. High schools will now field only junior varsity and varsity basketball teams, which CCPS says brings the sport in line with how every other CCPS sport is already structured across the fall, winter and spring seasons.
Cheerleading travel is also being scaled back. Basketball cheerleading squads, for instance, will now attend home games only, cutting into their travel schedule alongside the broader team-travel restrictions.
For athletic events that fall on non-school days, such as Saturday competitions, coaches can ask parents and guardians to arrange their own transportation to and from the venue as a way to offset travel costs. The district was explicit on one point, though: coaches are not permitted, under any circumstances, to personally transport student athletes, unless the student being driven is the coach’s own child.
The changes follow another cost-cutting move CCPS made to athletics this year, when the district stopped absorbing the $1 GoFan convenience fee on sports tickets, shifting that cost to ticket buyers starting with the 2026-27 season.
CCPS said it may roll out additional cost-saving measures affecting athletics as the year continues, while stating a goal of maintaining student participation levels. Questions about CCPS athletic programs can be directed to the Office of School Administration and Leadership at 301-932-6610.
