Highland Park parent appealing UIL decision that led to soccer team forfeiting state title

A Highland Park parent is appealing the UIL’s decision to strip Highland Park of its Class 5A Division II boys soccer state championship.

Cara Pierce appeared before a UIL state executive committee hearing Wednesday to contend the ruling that her son was academically ineligible when he participated in its 2-0 win over Liberty Hill on April 11 in the state title game, as well as four district games, all of which Highland Park forfeited.

Pierce said her son shouldn’t have been ruled ineligible, citing a 2007 Senate bill that amended the state’s “no , no play” law.

The bill intended to establish a statewide standard for the honors courses that would be exempt from the law, “so as to encourage students to take these courses without fear of losing their academic eligibility,” states a letter Pierce included in her appeal from former state Sen. Florence Shapiro, R-Plano, who chaired the Senate education committee when the bill was ed.

“Further, consistent with our desire to achieve greater uniformity, it was our intent that local school districts would not have the discretion to impose ‘No , No Play’ requirements on these courses by some other means,” the letter continues.

In 2008, the State Board of Education identified certain honors courses, including pre-calculus, that could be exempt from consideration for determining athletic eligibility. Students with grades of 70 or below in these courses could be allowed to play. The policy also states that districts are neither required to or restricted from identifying certain courses as honors for the purpose of calculating grade point averages.

During the hearing, Highland Park athletic director Jeremy Gilbert said any student at the school who has received a grade of 70 or below in pre-calculus previously has been ruled ineligible for athletic competition.

“That has been a longstanding practice that we have followed at Highland Park,” he said, adding that he arrived at “a really difficult decision,” to self-report after speaking with UIL officials.

Under UIL rules, the minimum penalty for playing an ineligible athlete is forfeiture of the contest. As a result, Liberty Hill was awarded the state title. In her appeal, Pierce requested that Highland Park and Liberty Hill be named co-champions.

Gilbert and Highland Park boys soccer coach Scott Turner did not return requests for comment.

Pierce said she was not aware her son was failing pre-calculus. She said her son told her he did poorly on an assessment. But she received a progress report from Highland Park saying he was in good standing and did not have a grade below 75 in any course.

Pierce called for the UIL to “do the right thing” and “follow what the law says.” The UIL said it would notify her as soon as a decision is made but gave no timetable.

UIL executive director Jamey Harrison did not participate in the hearing Wednesday because of a potential conflict of interest. Harrison is a resident of Liberty Hill, according to the Liberty Hill Independent.

CORRECTION, 9:28 a.m., May 22, 2025: Due to an editing error, an earlier version of this story identified Cara Foos Pierce, an SMU law professor and former assistant U.S. attorney, as the parent who filed the appeal, but she is not the same Cara Pierce.