Loudoun County Explores Middle School Sports
Loudoun County has always considered the possibility of middle school sports teams, but now, it seems, the plans that have fallen short in the past may actually be in motion. Ian Serotkin, a Loudoun County School Board member, discussed the potentiality of middle school sports and their costs at a recent meeting on Sept. 21.
In the past couple weeks, conversations have been heating up about middle school sports and whether they should be a part of LCPS.
“It’s worth noting that some of those leagues exist because we don’t have middle school sports programs in LCPS,” Serotkin said, as reported by Loudoun Now. “The demand is definitely there, private organizations and parks and rec have figured out jerry-rigged solutions. The fact that, yes, it might have some impact… I think the community is doing those things anyway as a run around us, because we don’t have the programs.”
Although the school board has not come to a decision as of the time of this article, Stone Bridge students have their own thoughts on the possibility of middle school sports.
“It would be great if we could get middle school sports,” said junior Ben Seidel. “My brother is in middle school and he has basically been begging for it for a while now. I agree with him, because when I was in middle school almost no kids did any sports at all, but if we could get some in middle school, then more kids can get physically active earlier, and the kids might get some pride for their middle school. Which a lot of kids do not have until high school.”
While some are for the change, most are against the proposition for a variety of reasons. Some of those reasons are on behalf of infrastructure. Though most middle schools have the gymnasium space to have programs such as basketball and volleyball, there are other facilities missing. Outdoor facilities like a baseball field or a track vary greatly in the county. Also, most schools in LCPS do not have a football field to sustain any other activities. Even if they were to have the space, field maintenance costs the district 700,000 a year for just high school sports.
“Even though most people I know want middle school sports, I just do not feel like we need it. I mean it probably costs a ton of money” said sophomore Tommy Rizley. “And even though this county has funding , we can not sustain 5-6 sports per school, I feel like”.
Overall, the proposal for middle school sports is a divisive topic among school board members and students alike. But even if one choice favors another among the Loudoun community, it is all up to the school board.
