ALPENA, Mich. (Michigan News Source) – An Alpena Public Schools Board of Education member says his past votes against renewing the district’s athletic association membership were intended to protect girls’ sports.
The votes
AJ MacArthur explained during a Monday, Oct. 19, meeting that his opposition stems from the Michigan High School Athletic Association’s (MHSAA) policy allowing transgender girls to compete in girls’ sports through a case-by-case review process. He was responding to a recent letter to the editor in The Alpena News.
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MacArthur voted against MHSAA membership resolutions on June 26, 2023, and June 29, 2026. Both resolutions passed.
“I am happy to share my reasoning,” MacArthur said. “My votes were not cast because I don’t like sports. If you want to play sports, go for it. My reason is because the MHSAA, as part of their policy, reserves the right to utilize a case-by-case review process in allowing students to compete in a sport opposite their gender assigned at birth. I do not believe a biological male should ever compete against biological females in an all female sport.”
He added, “My vote was cast out of concern and protection for our athletes.”
MacArthur was elected in November 2022 to a four-year term ending Dec. 31, 2026. He currently serves as board vice president and is running for reelection on Nov. 3.
Alpena remains an MHSAA member
Alpena High School remains an MHSAA member, and its teams compete in the Big North Conference.
MHSAA spokesman Geoff Kimmerly told Michigan News Source that membership “enforces a standardized set of rules that promote competitive equity and balance with academics and other educational programming.”
Membership is voluntary, he said, but schools that do not join cannot participate in MHSAA postseason tournaments.
Kimmerly said no students are competing under transgender eligibility waivers this school year.
“For many years, MHSAA policy in this area has been crafted to be fully compliant with federal and state law,” he said.
