Let MSHSAA members run the nonprofit, not politicians with axes to grind | Opinion
An ongoing crusade by Missouri Republicans to take over the board that governs high school sports is on hold, for now.
Senate Bill 863 was apparently set aside for future consideration, according to representatives of the lawmaker who sponsored the legislation. However, Jennifer Rukstad, executive director of the Missouri State High School Activities Association, said the organization has not been able to confirm this very important detail about the organization's future.
“We have not confirmed this, but we’re hopeful with more time we can continue to work on a resolution,” Rukstad wrote in an email.
Sponsored by state Sen. Jason Bean, a Republican from southeast Missouri, the bill would basically disband MSHSAA’s current board and replace it with members appointed by Gov. Mike Kehoe, if approved. Not only did S.B. 863 pass out of the body’s education committee, but as of Tuesday, the measure was still on the Senate’s informal calendar for perfection — meaning the potential takeover isn’t quite dead yet.
Until the bill is officially scrapped, anyone with a vested interest in keeping political influence out of interscholastic activities in Missouri should call or write their elected representatives in both chambers to share their thoughts on S.B. 863.
In an email sent to me on Monday, Bean’s chief of staff Kyle Aubuchon wrote: “Senate Bill 863 was on the Missouri Senate floor last Tuesday for debate. After some time, the bill was set aside for future consideration.”
According to Aubuchon, the debate and conversation was productive and a “first step towards finding a path forward,” he wrote. “Our introduced version of the legislation created the framework for a governor-appointed board of directors to oversee MSHSAA,” Aubuchon wrote.
“As our research and conversations continued, our new version built upon that framework to identify the duties and responsibilities of the governor-appointed board. We are taking the feedback and input from the debate and our conversations to implement into the legislation. It is too early to determine when the bill will be brought back before the Senate for further debate and a vote.”
I am very concerned about this ongoing crusade by Missouri Republicans to take over MSHSAA if this pending legislation makes its way to Kehoe’s desk. You should be, too.
It should be left up to MSHSAA's more than 720 members to dictate how that non-profit organization is run, not elected public officials with political axes to grind. According to language in the proposal, these political appointees would have to be confirmed by the full state Senate — a potential development that could have long-lasting ramifications for high school athletes across the state, if the bill is approved.
Last week, Bean told the Columbia Missourian that negotiations with MSHSAA “didn’t really fit what we were looking to accomplish in this bill.”
“We’re looking for transparency,” Bean told the publication. “We’re looking for fairness, and we feel what MSHSAA has done over the last not just few but many years has not accomplished that.”
To be clear, Bean has said that the proposal would not eliminate MSHSAA but only enact an oversight board within the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education. But that’s not what MSHSAA thinks, saying it’s “under attack.”
The governor-appointed board would hire an executive director to oversee operations and serve as an appellate body for decisions made by the activities association. The new board would also act as a go-between to collect and transfer public school funds to the association, according to language in the bill.
In a video rebuke of this pending legislation, MSHSAA’s Rukstad said the bill would lead to a total takeover of MSHSAA if approved. She called on school leaders to contact lawmakers as the bill advances through the Missouri Senate. I feel anyone concerned about this possible undoing of MSHSAA should interject as well.
In the video, Rukstad said the association tried in good faith to work with Bean and other legislators on a compromise, but those efforts proved futile.
“Our association as we know it is under attack from our state legislature,” Rukstad said in the video. “It’s time to fight for the future of high school sports and activities in our state.”
Politics simply have no place in Missouri interscholastic sports and activities.
I am opposed to any legislation that would eliminate MSHSAA and anyone who cares about what’s best for school children should be too.
This story was originally published February 10, 2026 at 10:04 AM.
