Public vs private debate not unique to Georgia

► This is the second in a four-part Sunday series on the private vs. public school debate.
The debate that has caught fire in Georgia between public and private schools does not end at the state's borders.
The differences between the two types of schools are felt in any state where the two have the possibility to coexist and compete with each other. And many states have different ways of handling the issue.
Like Georgia, there doesn't seem to be a solution that satisfies everyone.
TEXAS
The largest state in the nation has arguably the biggest high school football scene in the United States. That scene is divided into two parts.
High school sports in Texas are split into two different leagues, one for public schools and one for private schools. The University Interscholastic League (UIL) is the organization that oversees public school sports and the Texas Association of Private and Parochial Schools (TAPPS) is the governing body of private school sports.
"It has always been that way to my knowledge," said Edd Burleson, director of TAPPS. "When the UIL was founded, it included public schools. I never thought as to why."
There are actually two private schools that compete in the UIL, but those two schools have all-male enrollments and are large enough to compete in the higher classifications. They are too large to compete in TAPPS.
Burleson said that every two years, there is one or two bills proposed to the state legislature requesting to combine the leagues that never pass. Most consider this a case of fixing something that isn't broken.
"(Separate leagues) have worked extremely well in Texas," said Cliff Odenwald, director of athletics for the UIL. "If we combined the leagues, you would see the same issues you are seeing in Georgia. There has not really been an outcry from private schools to combine the two."
Odenwald believes the success of the two leagues stems from the size of the state and number of schools. There are 1,300 public schools in Texas and 264 private schools, more than the total number of schools in some states.
After being told of the debate that exists in Georgia between public and private schools, Burleson said he thought the same would happen in Texas without different leagues. He said that maybe just one in five private schools have expressed interest in combining the UIL and TAPPS.
"I don't see (the bill to combine the two) ever passing," Burleson said. "If it did, it will impact us very little."
TENNESSEE
High schools, public and private, in Tennessee compete together during the regular season. But when the postseason rolls around, there is a split.
The Tennessee Secondary School Athletic Association (TSSAA) divides schools into two divisions - Division I and Division II - and crowns state champions in each separate division. Each division also has its own classifications.
The divisional split is not based on whether a school is public or private, however. The schools in Division II are those that provide financial aid to students and Division I are the schools that don't. Bernard Childress, executive director of TSSAA, said there are public and private schools in both.
"It is not a complete split," Childress said. "I don't think everyone would be satisfied with any decision that is made. It still comes up. There are some that still feel like we need to pull all independent schools out."
Division I is the larger of the two divisions with 354 schools. The larger division also features six classifications in football and three in other sports. Division II has 40 schools in it and football is the only sport that has more than one classification with two.
The move to create two different divisions started as a proposal that went through the legislative council. At the time, the topic of whether schools that provide financial aid should compete with those that don't was a popular one.
Since then, the debate has died down, but not completely.
"It still comes up," Childress said. "It will always be an issue. It just depends on who you talk to."
ALABAMA
While Georgia recently did away with a multiplier to the enrollment of private schools, its nearest neighbor to the West is still going strong with one.
In Alabama, most private schools and public schools compete under the same governing body - the Alabama High School Athletic Association (AHSAA). With 413 total schools in the AHSAA, there are 40 private schools - roughly