Wake is bringing back limited middle school sports. Here’s why some are unhappy.
The Wake County school system is bringing back middle school sports, but students won’t be allowed to play against teams from other schools because of COVID-19 concerns.
Wake had suspended middle school sports for the fall semester with the intention of bringing them back for the spring semester with interscholastic competitions. But school administrators announced Tuesday a new plan in which middle school teams will only offer practices and, in some cases, intramural competitions in which students only play against people at their school who are on their same school cohort.
Due to state COVID-19 rules that limit school capacity, Wake split middle school students into three groups or cohorts. Each group has a rotation of one week of in-person classes and two weeks of online classes.
“This decision was made as an effort to strike a balance between offering the opportunity for students to participate in after-school activities and to be able to do so in an equitable manner, while honoring the need to limit the interaction and possible transmission of COVID between students from different cohorts and different schools,” Deran Coe, Wake’s athletic director told the school board on Tuesday.
“We believe this will also aid our efforts to continue in-person learning for middle school students.”
Some sports limited to practices
Coe said the district is using state Department of Health and Human Services guidance on what middle school sports can safely be played on an intramural basis.
Coe said football, basketball and competitive cheerleading will not be eligible at middle schools because DHHS deems them to be at high risk for COVID transmission. Coe said those student-athletes will be limited to workouts, practices and skill development activities where coaches work with the athletes.
Soccer, softball, track and field and volleyball will be eligible for intramural games, Coe said.
Middle schools will offer sports in three different seasons:
▪ Winter Sports (Basketball, Cheerleading) Jan. 25-Feb. 19
▪ Fall Sports (Football, Boys Soccer, Volleyball, Cheerleading) Feb. 22-March 2
▪ Spring Sports (Track & Field, Softball, Girls Soccer) April 7-May 14
Coe said that tryouts won’t be needed, but students will still have to take physicals. More details, including what forms are needed, are available at https://www.wcpss.net/Page/47072.
Students will be able to participate only on days when they are in school for face-to-face instruction. But the district also says that schools will reach out Virtual Academy students, who are only taking online classes, to determine their interest in participating.
Coe acknowledged that it’s not ideal suspending interscholastic sports. But he said Wake is doing more than other large North Carolina school districts that canceled their middle school sports programs or are waiting until all students are back on campus before resuming them.
Parents object to sports limits
Information about the changes had been shared with parents, who’ve been complaining to school board members about middle schools not offering interscholastic athletics.
“We certainly know that this is going to be difficult for many of our families and athletes who look for middle school to be their springboard into high school athletic careers,” said board member Monika Johnson-Hostler.
Board member Chris Heagarty said middle school families are questioning why they’re being treated differently than high school sports teams, which are still holding competitions against other schools.
“There are a lot of upset parents,” Heagarty said. “There are some upset coaches. There are a number of disappointed student-athletes out there who are trying to understand why high school athletes and high school teams will be able to compete that are on the same cohort model as middle schools.”
Coe said it was an equity issue why middle schools aren’t offering interscholastic sports.
“Middle school students have less access to transportation than high school students and therefore have fewer options for getting to school in the afternoons,” Wake says in its online update. “It is inequitable to have activities open only to those students who have an available adult able to take them to campus in the afternoons.”
COVID cases at high school teams
High school sports are ramping up statewide, with basketball games beginning this week in public schools.
But Coe said that it hasn’t been easy getting to this point.
Through Dec. 18, Coe said Wake had 75 people associated with high school athletic teams test positive for COVID-19. In addition, 167 workouts and/or practices, 20 matches and one meet were canceled.
Coe also said 13 basketball teams had to quarantine in some capacity over the past two weeks.
In this unusual school year, Coe said the message to teams has been to remain focused on the process rather than the outcome. He said they’re using athletics to teach students about life skills, teamwork and perseverance.
“Winning games and championships should not be the main goal for our teams,” Coe said. “Providing an opportunity for students to participate in some level or activity which they love to do in as safe a manner as possible is a true victory.”
This story was originally published January 7, 2021 at 6:00 AM with the headline "Wake is bringing back limited middle school sports. Here’s why some are unhappy.."
