Ultimate frisbee players pushing for PE credit waiver in Denver Public Schools

School may be out for summer, but students within Denver Public Schools (DPS) are already thinking about how to expand access to one of their favorite sports in the upcoming fall semester.

Liza Huggins fell in love with ultimate frisbee when she began playing in fifth grade.

"I love it so much. It's genuinely probably one of my favorite things to do, like in the world," said Huggins.

Now a student at East High School, Huggins believes ultimate frisbee should receive a physical education (PE) credit for DPS students who participate in the sport.

"Essentially, it takes away from our ability to function as a true sports team the way many others would be able to, because we're committing time or energy to these activities that really shouldn't be necessary," said Huggins. "I want us to get the credit that I feel that we deserve for the effort we put into our sport.

Another DPS student who attends Northfield High School, Straton Geddes, also wants to see a PE credit for ultimate frisbee.

It would mean the next step for growing the sport, because like we mentioned before, it doesn't get a lot of recognition," said Geddes. It's kind of a long process, a hard process, but I feel like if we put in the work that it takes, it will get there."

Denver7 reached out to the Colorado High School Activities Association (CHSAA), and a spokesperson said they cannot speak on the PE credit since that is a "local level decision."

The spokesperson continued to say that CHSAA does not decide which sports are sanctioned, and instead has a process for member leagues to pursue sanctioning for any sports or activities. The process begins with a two-year pilot program, followed by a review of feedback from that initial program, and then a final vote to decide whether the proposed sport or activity is adopted.

In a statement, a spokesperson from DPS said high school students are allowed to waive one semester of PE for each season they participate in a CHSAA-sanctioned sport. That waiver request has to be submitted by Sept. 30 of the student's senior year.

Huggins said the option to become sanctioned by CHSAA would not be the best option for ultimate frisbee, for reasons like how many students participate in the program. So, she plans to ask the school board to consider the PE credit waiver, like other districts do.

A spokesperson with Boulder Valley School District told Denver7 they allow students to waive one PE credit per semester at the discretion of an athletic director or principal of the school. Those students must meet certain guidelines related to the sport as well, such as how frequently they practice.