Uplift Education has formally withdrawn its schools from the University Interscholastic League, the governing body for Texas high school sports told The Dallas Morning News on Thursday.
The Dallas-area charter school district sent the UIL its formal notice less than a month after district realignment for the 2026-28 school years was announced. When contacted for comment, the district said it will provide a statement early next week.
The news, which was first reported by Dave Campbell’s Texas Football, will result in changes to several D-FW UIL districts.
Uplift had four area schools participating in UIL competition for basketball, soccer and volleyball: Hampton in Dallas, North Hills in Irving, Summit International in Arlington and Williams in Dallas.
High School Sports
Hampton is preparing to field its first football team in 2026 and was set to participate in District 5-4A Division II with Glen Rose, Hillsboro, Kemp and Venus.
In basketball, the four schools had been playing in District 10-4A along with Carrollton Ranchview, which was to continue in the next alignment. Uplift’s departure leaves Ranchview as the only team in District 10, so the UIL will have to restructure the districts to place at least four other teams alongside the program.
One possible solution that the UIL could consider is dividing District 11-4A, a district currently consisting of nine Dallas ISD schools: Carter, Conrad, Wilmer-Hutchins, Kimball, Lincoln, Pinkston, Roosevelt, Spruce and North Dallas. The UIL could select four schools from District 11 to sent north to District 10. Conrad, Lincoln, North Dallas and Pinkston would be the closest campuses geographically to Ranchview.
Districts have to have at least four teams, but the only four-team district in Texas for the next realignment cycle is for Class 1A Division II in football.
Leaving the UIL to play in a league with other charter or prep schools, such as the Texas Charter School Academic & Athletic League, could help Uplift’s teams be more competitive. The three boys basketball teams that made the playoffs this year — North Hills, Summit International and Williams — were eliminated in the first round by an average margin of 81 points. The girls teams lost in the first round earlier this month by an average margin of 63 points.