Kingsville Independent School District officials said they were pleased after being notified Thursday morning that the district had dropped from a 4A to a 3A district, according to the recent University Interscholastic League reclassification and realignment.

The UIL realigns school districts every two years, with the newest alignment beginning this fall and continuing until the spring of 2014.

Superintendents submitted enrollment figures in October to determine the biennium reclassification and realignment of the school districts.

KISD students will now participate in UIL competitions in District 31 with Lyford, Raymondville, Rio Grande City Grulla and Zapata.

As a 4A district, Kingsville competed mostly with Coastal Bend area schools.

“We will be very competitive in all phases of UIL academics and all sports,” Interim KISD Superintendent Ruben Corkill said.

“We had been a smaller 4A school and now going to a larger 3A school,” Corkill said. “The coaches seem to be very excited.”

The interim superintendent said the new alignment would not impact academics.

Robert Wilcox, KISD athletic director and head football coach, was at the Region 2 Education Service Center in Corpus Christi Thursday to find out the new UIL realignments.

Wilcox and other athletic directors in the Coastal Bend area found out which schools they would be playing.

However, he said the possibility of additional travel because of the new alignment was one drawback.

“We did not expect to go in a district with the Valley schools,” Wilcox said. “We just thought it made sense to play schools in this area.”

Rolando Molina, H.M. King High School band director and KISD music director, said Thursday he was very happy with the new realignment.

“We are elated because this opens up opportunities for students to make All-State band,” Molina said. “We are very happy to get another shot at state and bring home more awards.”

UIL Communication Officer Chris Schmidt on Thursday said the UIL reclassification and realignment is determined by high school enrollment figures in grades 9 to 12.

“The schools are placed in districts based on geography in proximity to other schools within their conference,” Schmidt said.

Schmidt said the KISD submitted a high school enrollment figure of 981.5 in October.

Kingsville is one of 15 school districts that dropped from a 4A to a 3A classification, according to UIL officials. A 3A school district has an enrollment that ranges from 450 to 1,004 high school students.