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The Brownsville Independent School District will send three teams to compete at the first UIL Unified Interscholastic Regional Track Meet on Friday at Texas A&M University-Kingsville.
Teams from Hanna, Veterans Memorial and Porter early college high schools will compete in the meet at Javelina Stadium, 917 E. Corral Ave. in Kingsville.
Teams of special needs athletes, each paired with a non-disabled counterpart, will compete in boys and girls four by 100 relays, long jump, shot put and 100-meter and 400-meter races. Scoring will be on a team basis.
The meet will mark another milestone in a 12-year campaign by Brownsville businessman Sergio Zarate and others to get Senate Bill 776, also known as Zariah’s Law, passed. The measure authorizes competitive sports in the public schools for special needs students
Zarate daughter Zariah Zariah, a special needs student, attends Veterans Memorial. Her father, with help from others on both sides of the political aisle, got Senate Bill 776 passed in the 87th Texas Legislature on her behalf.
The law is intended to make competitive sports for special needs children commonplace, not just for the competitive aspect but also so that they receive the long term-benefits of coaching and being part of a team.
BISD has been working since last year to implement Zariah’s Law.
The advanced to regional competition, just like in every other UIL high school sport, from football to basketball, baseball, swimming and diving and track and field.
