Category: Coronavirus

Patience needed as states develop plans for restarting high school sports and activities

(Ryan Casey/CHSAANow.com)

For several weeks, Americans have been awaiting answers to several questions. When will restaurants restart dine-in services? When will hair salons and gyms be open? When will people be able to congregate for worship services? And, of course, when will education-based sports and activities return?

And the answer to the all-important last question is the same as the first three – it varies from state to state.

If there was ever any doubt about the popularity and interest in high school sports and performing arts – and how much these programs have been missed during the past three months – it was erased last week as the NFHS released its Guidance for Opening Up High School Athletics and Activities document.

The response was non-stop through the mainstream media as well as our social media platforms as the first nationwide discussion about the return of high school sports and other activities was in full swing.

Since that disappointing week in mid-March when it seemed like all of life came to a halt, millions of people – from high school students, coaches, parents, administrators, officials and fans – have been looking forward to the return of school-based sports and other activity programs. And the guidance document offered some hope that soon the light at the end of tunnel will not be the oncoming train we have felt for many weeks.

Now, state high school associations are developing timetables and protocols for return of activities in their states. And those guidelines will be different from state to state. This is not a one-size-fits-all plan. Depending on the specific circumstances of a state with respect to the containment of the virus, its progression through the various phases of returning to activities could be much different than another state.

As the guidance document developed by the NFHS Sports Medicine Advisory Committee noted, our hope is that students can return to school-based athletics and activities in any and all situations where it can be done smartly. When it comes to education-based sports and performing arts within our nation’s schools, nothing is more important than the health and safety of the participants AND the individuals conducting those programs.

Some individuals have expressed concern that our guidance document is too cautious, noting that some non-school youth programs have already restarted in some areas.

In one state this past week, a non-school sports program was allowed to restart because the “data shows children are less affected by the coronavirus.” While the preponderance of evidence shows that to be true, plans in education-based activities will include also protection for adults who coach, officiate and administer those events, which may be seen as a more conservative approach.

Within high school sports, the drive of coaches and dreams of parents cannot run ahead of player safety. Last week, a successful high school football coach with three previous state titles was suspended for allegedly holding practices. And there have been reports of parents considering moving to another state with fewer COVID-19 cases to enhance the chance of their son playing football and earning a college scholarship.

The NFHS, through its Sports Medicine Advisory Committee, took action in developing its Guidance for Opening Up High School Athletics and Activities document. The various state high school associations are taking action in the coming weeks in developing plans for a return to activities at the state level.

Now, we would ask parents and other fans to take action – and that action is patience. The urge to return to normal is understandable, but the path back to where we were three months ago will take time, and that “time” will not happen at the expense of the safety and well-being of everyone involved in high school sports and performing arts programs.

May 27, 2020
CHSAA to lift moratorium with strict guidelines for resuming in-person conditioning sessions

(Ryan Casey/CHSAANow.com)

CHSAA is lifting the moratorium against in-person condition sessions between coaches and high school participants beginning on June 1.

After that date, decisions regarding athletics and activities through the summer months will be made at the local school district level. The CHSAA’s administrative oversight for athletics and activities will resume when camps, clinics and fall sports practice dates are projected to begin.

“This isn’t recreational park play or a free-for-all,” said CHSAA commissioner Rhonda Blanford-Green. “Our schools will face some challenges, no different than professional and collegiate sports to resume any level of student participation.”

“Each district’s individual date of return has been fully supported by our office,” Blanford-Green continued. “Our school administrators have assessed their local situations and have made the best decisions based on the safety and well-being of their students and school personnel.”

Blanford-Green provided schools with suggested recommendations in an email sent on Tuesday, which referenced national, state and health guidelines to assist the membership with resuming activities and athletics while prioritizing safety standards and protocols.

“There is light at the end of the tunnel,” Blanford-Green said. “As with reopening our country and our state, taking incremental steps within the mandated and suggested guidelines will be critical in ensuring the success of transitioning from virtual to in-person.

“I have strongly recommended that each school or district have a comprehensive plan in place during this transition, and that their school communities including participants, parents and especially coaches are informed of the expectations prior to physical contact or conducting in-person sessions,” she added.

“Our students, coaches, schools and the Association are ready to resocialize back to participation,” Blanford-Green said. “The importance of returning to education-based athletics and activities reaches beyond a contest or a perceived scholarship. It is about reconnecting our students — socially, emotionally and physically.”

The CHSAA Resocialization Task Force will meet after June 1 to begin discussions on athletics and activities for high school participation for the 2020-21 school year.

All relevant bylaws still apply during this period, including football equipment rules, and camp limitations.

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[pdf-embedder url=”https://old.chsaanow.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/Guidance-for-returning-to-conditioning-on-June-1.pdf” title=”Guidance for returning to conditioning on June 1″]

May 22, 2020
CHSAA creates Resocialization Task Force to examine when, and how, to resume sports and activities
(Kevin Keyser/KeyserImages.com)

The Colorado High School Activities Association has convened a specialized task force to discuss the return of athletics and activities.

The CHSAA Resocialization Task Force will begin meeting in June, and will consist of educational leaders representing all levels of administration, classifications and state geography; CHSAA Sports Medicine Advisory members; as well as the members of the Board of Directors, and the CHSAA staff.

The purpose of the task force is to explore the many options on if, when or how, activities and athletics can resume for Colorado high schools.

Commissioner Rhonda Blanford-Green announced the purpose of the task force in an email to all schools on Thursday. She has already received an outpouring of interest of educational leaders willing to serve.

“The immediate and overwhelming response speaks volumes to amazing educational leaders across our state, who are committed to Colorado students and working with CHSAA to create this experience, knowing the challenges we will face,” said Blanford-Green. “Each and everyone that has reached out to members of our staff would elevate the discussion, so we will have another tough decision to make.”

In her email to schools, Blanford-Green wrote: “Every single sports entity from the professionals to little league are currently focused on how to resume participant engagement within a safe environment, free of health threats and liability. If resocialization was easy, we would all be watching current events instead of re-runs of the 2004 Athens Olympics.”

She added: “My goal, and that of the CHSAA staff, is to remain laser focused on the next steps for resuming CHSAA programs in a safe, educational, environment while mitigating operational efficiencies to reduce financial stressors for our membership.”

This Resocialization Task Force will not be pressured to commit to definitive dates or timelines, but is assembled to provide guidance to the Association that is consistent with Federal and State mandates.

“The term Resocialization was coined by the NCAA, I paused at first, but then I realized its overarching meaning, which is beyond just a game or a contest,” Blanford-Green said. “It’s about coming back to the culture of athletics and activities: teammates and socialization, and the support system that extends beyond. Resocialization embodies all the attributes of education-based participation that we all want and need to safely return.”

Blanford-Green will look at keeping this task force in place throughout the 2020-21 season.

The group will have a clear set of questions and topics to examine beginning in June:
- Do students need to be fully engaged with in-person learning before the Association resumes activities and athletics?
- Should CHSAA consider offering some activities and athletics if Federal, state, medical and safety guidelines can be met at the local and Association level?
- Should CHSAA consider moving some activities and athletics to later start dates, such as September, October, or January, and consider extending the end of the season further than the traditional activities calendar?
- Should CHSAA consider adjusting some activities and athletics to be conducted earlier or later than their traditional season?
- Should we consider online participation for some activities in place of physical activation?
- What safety measures will need to be in place to resume specific and/or all activities?
“Adjusting to the unimaginable impact that the pandemic has had on education and high school athletics will allow us to think outside the box and emerge as stronger leaders for students and programs across the state of Colorado,” Blanford-Green said.
May 15, 2020
Trying to read the crystal ball for reopening high school sports and activities

(Poudre Schools)

Reopening is the key word in sports at all levels right now. Every day, there are new projections for when the National Basketball Association and Major League Baseball will resume – and if the National Football League will start on time this fall.

Along with leaders of youth-level sports and the NCAA, the NFHS and its member state associations are exploring all options for conducting sports this fall. And while we all want answers, the truth is that there are more questions than answers at this point.

Dr. Anthony Fauci, the leading national medical authority throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, told ESPN earlier this week that “the virus will make the decision for us” on whether sports will return this fall. His comments underscore the need for leaders of all levels of sport in the United States to exercise great caution as we reengage in activities.

Without a doubt, education will play a larger role in the decision-making process for high school programs than for non-scholastic programs. Despite the significant loss of revenue that could occur at some levels if programs remained closed, health and safety concerns must take priority when it comes to reopening the sport or activity.

At the high school level, sports and other activity programs will most likely not return until schools reopen. High school sports and performing arts are education-based programs and complete the learning process on a day-to-day basis. As such, academics during the school day and sports and other activities after school are inseparable.

Could any of those sports and activities return without fans? That option is certainly not one schools favor, but it is a very real possibility. While a few state associations opted for that arrangement to complete state basketball tournaments, that is not a desired ongoing plan for school sports. Besides, this troubling question would have to be addressed: If it is unsafe for fans in the stands, is it safe for the students to be participating?

Students, parents and other fans in the stands cheering for and supporting student-athletes, and applauding from the theatre audience, are among the most wonderful aspects of education-based activities. Before accepting that arrangement, efforts will continue to make attending events a safe experience for everyone.

While we remain uncertain as to the timetable for the return of high school sports and other activities, we believe that when these programs return – and they will return – that everyone will bring renewed zeal to provide the 12 million participants in these programs the best experience possible.

One of the challenges to solving the crystal ball of high school sports and activities this fall is the uncertainty of the spread of the virus as states begin to reopen this month. The NFHS will continue to work with its Sports Medicine Advisory Committee on an ongoing basis to provide the most updated information.

With the non-negotiable tenet of safety for student activity participants, expect every avenue to be pursued so that students can be involved in football, soccer, volleyball, field hockey, speech, debate, music and many other school activities this fall.

May 14, 2020
With spring sports and activities cancelled, state leaders salute students and volunteers

(Geoff Sager/GPSImaging16.com)

On Monday, the New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association became the 51st and final NFHS member state high school association to cancel its spring sports championships due to the Coronavirus pandemic. The cancellation announcements that began in late March, stretched to early May as states made every attempt possible to conduct spring sports and other activity programs.

Driven by a desire to offer perhaps a few weeks of competition – particularly for graduating seniors – many states waited as long as possible to move from postponed to cancelled, ultimately forced to make decisions when schools were closed to in-person learning for the remainder of the academic year.

While the leaders of our state associations knew that spring activities could not occur if schools did not re-open, and that the health and safety of the millions of participants ultimately drove these decisions, having to make these announcements was perhaps the most difficult task they had experienced as state leaders.

“We are disappointed for the thousands of New Jersey student-athletes who will be unable to compete this spring,” said Larry White, executive director of the New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association. “While we remained hopeful to the end, and left open every possibility, competition simply is not feasible given the circumstances. It has been a harrowing time for everyone, and we know our student-athletes are extremely disappointed. That said, these unfortunate circumstances may have put an intriguing challenge in the path of our young people. As New Jersey’s own Vince Lombardi once said, ‘It’s not whether you get knocked down, it’s whether you get up.’ We’re confident all our kids will get back up and stand tall.”

Rhonda Blanford-Green, commissioner of the Colorado High School Activities Association, showed her emotions in making the difficult decision in her state:

“This decision, unlike the many decisions our office makes over the course of a year, has been extremely difficult because we are personally connected as former participants and officials, current parents and grandparents of graduating seniors, as well as educators and members of our high school communities. Our hats are off to the many seniors who have shown maturity and resolve as their culminating year of high school has been impacted beyond activities and athletics due to the worldwide COVID-19 pandemic. The Class of 2020 will not be forgotten.”

Craig Anderson, executive director of the Illinois High School Association, said, “Our thoughts are with all the impacted students, coaches and communities, especially the seniors. It will be difficult for them to find a silver lining in all of this, but we stress that even if they don’t get the chance to compete again at the high school level, they are better for having been a part of their respective high school teams. They were exposed to life lessons in teamwork, leadership and overcoming adversity that are difficult to replicate elsewhere.”

What was at stake and who was affected by these cancellation announcements? More than 500 girls and boys spring sports championships in about 18 sports and involving about three million student-athletes.

Along with multiple classes for both boys and girls in track and field, other sports affected this spring were baseball, softball, lacrosse, golf, tennis, soccer, flag football, boys volleyball, water polo, weightlifting, gymnastics, riflery, judo, Unified track and field and ultimate Frisbee. Also grounded were perhaps another million participants in band, choir, orchestra, speech, debate, robotics and other activity programs.

And last, but far from least, we remember the thousands of volunteers who make these events happen every year – ticket-takers, concession stand workers, booster club parents, meet officials and the leaders in communities throughout the country where these events were planned.

We thank these individuals for their faithful service year after year, and we look forward to the day we are all back together again.

May 7, 2020
Videos: To the Class of 2020 in the age of the COVID-19 pandemic; seniors reflect on high school sports

In the age of COVID-19, our hats are off to the many seniors who have shown maturity and resolve as a worldwide pandemic has impacted their culminating year of high school — athletics, activities, proms, graduations, and beyond.

To the Class of 2020: You will not be forgotten.

A special thanks to Mike Rice of KOA for lending his voice talents to this video.

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We asked seniors from across the state two questions: What did high school sports mean to you? And, What will you remember the most from your high school sports career?

May 7, 2020
Spring 2020 season cancelled due to on-going COVID-19 pandemic

(Ryan Casey/CHSAANow.com)

Dear student participants, coaches, administrators, officials and school communities:

We have proceeded with cautious optimism, holding on to a thread of hope that the spring season would be able to realistically resume, knowing that the health and safety of our sports communities would dictate our course of action. It was our hope to be able to create the memories because we understood what it meant to our high school communities — especially seniors — statewide.

Around the nation, more than 30 other state associations have made the difficult decision to cancel their spring season. We hoped that Colorado medical and health data would provide reassurances that we could go in a different direction. Unfortunately that will not be the case. The spring 2020 season is cancelled due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic which is affecting communities across the world.

Since March, we have continuously sought advice from state leaders, medical professionals, educational administrators and facility managers at the state and local levels to assess the probability of conducting statewide events this spring in a manner that would uphold safety mandates and recommendations.

On Monday, Governor Polis announced a transition to “Safer at Home” guidelines, which included the cancellation of in-person learning for the remainder of the school year. The decisions to cancel the spring season aligns with these new guidelines.

We convened a meeting of the Sports Medicine Advisory Committee on Monday evening. The group came to a consensus, and stated: “It would be impractical and irresponsible for the Association to move forward with a spring season in the next weeks or even the summer months.”

It is with this information — the inability to ensure operations under the protective guidelines, statewide accountability and public safety through all high school events — that the Association has cancelled all performances, festivals, competitions, regular season and culminating CHSAA-sanctioned spring activities and athletics for the remainder of the 2020 season, ending on June 1.

This decision, unlike the many decisions our office makes over the course of a year, has been extremely difficult because we are personally connected as former participants and officials, current parents and grandparents of graduating seniors, as well as educators and members of our high school communities.

The guidelines, as outlined in previous CHSAA spring moratorium communications will be in place until June 1, even if federal and state guidelines are relaxed. The Association will not sanction or conduct events after June 1. Local school districts will determine building usage during this time, and after June 1. (Note: Superintendents and Principals can hold meetings within state health guidelines with their staff, using their buildings. This does not allow for student and/or coach contact in an activity or athletic setting prior to June 1.)

After June 1, all decisions regarding student and coach contact, virtual workouts, virtual tryouts and eighth-grade contact will be made at the local level.

The CHSAA Board of Directors, Sports Medicine Advisory Committee and staff strongly recommend that federal and state guidelines are adhered to after June 1. We continue to maintain that public safety and monitoring of data points must take precedence over the desire to conduct activity and athletic practices, camps, scrimmages or events.

Our hats are off to the many seniors that have shown maturity and resolve as their culminating year of high school has been impacted beyond activities and athletics due to this worldwide COVID-19 pandemic. The Class of 2020 will not be forgotten.

Our fingers are now crossed and our hopes are that the Association will be able to conduct a fall season with some level of normalcy. Our office will be entirely focused on contingency plans for the 2020 fall season and beyond, should they be needed.

We will continue to communicate as state, local and health agencies keep us informed of new public health guidelines.

Rhonda Blanford-Green
CHSAA Commissioner

April 21, 2020
The Be The Light, Colorado movement is moving into its fourth week

The Be The Light, Colorado movement is entering its fourth week as dozens of schools around the state seek to be a beacon of hope for their students during the COVID-19 pandemic.

April 20, 2020
Commissioner’s update on COVID-19 and the spring season

(Ryan Casey/CHSAANow.com)

Hope this finds all safe and well,

As we wait patiently with cautious optimism, monitoring data points and updates for lifting restrictions and resuming in-person learning — but more importantly, safety for public interaction — much uncertainty continues to exists.

The clock is winding down for a definitive decision on whether resuming all CHSAA activities and athletics can begin if we do get an assurance of safety and mitigating the spread of COVID-19 has been given the green light by state and local health officials.

Through those consultations and collaborative efforts with state, educational and health officials, the Commissioner, aligned with the CHSAA Board of Directors, will provide a decision on or before May 2.

I want to give an important reminder that our Association is a statewide organization and decisions will continue to be made on behalf of all activities and athletics conducted in the spring season.

The numerous decisions, though emotionally difficult because we are kid-centered, will continue to be made responsibly — because we are kid-centered.

NOTE: Complete up-to-date Coronavirus information as it relates to the spring season can be found on this page. Currently the spring sports season is suspended until April 30.

April 18, 2020
Frequently asked questions about COVID-19 and the spring season

(Ryan Casey/CHSAANow.com)

The CHSAA office has found a few frequent topics when answering questions about the COVID-19 pandemic and the spring season.

So, we created a page dedicated to the latest information about the Coronavirus and included a list of Frequently Asked Questions. That page is here, and will be updated with the latest information, should updates be needed.

Commissioner Rhonda Blanford-Green answered these frequent questions, and we are also publishing them below.

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Why hasn’t the Commissioner made the decision to cancel spring sports?

We understand how extremely tough this is for our activity and athletic participants, especially graduating seniors, coaches and their school communities. We continue to extend dates aligned with restrictions, mandates and recommendations from state and health officials.

There are many factors that would need to be considered after the most recent extension of suspending spring sports to April 30. The primary factor in a decision like that will be a guarantee to our Association that activities can be conducted statewide without jeopardizing the safety of not only our students but our officials, coaches, staffs, volunteers and spectators. We are not confident that an assurance like that will be forthcoming after the 30th.

Our country and our state continue to adjust as they work to find answers and mitigate the spread of the virus. We don’t want to give false hope. Resuming spring activities and athletics statewide due to safety concerns does not appear promising.

May students have contact with coaches during this time?

We strongly encourage virtual contact by coaches and administrators to check on the well-being of their students as well as to upload workouts, but we have not permitted voluntary team workouts, rehearsals, or tryouts due to the direct or indirect implications of a mandatory participation by the students.

We need to be focused on our “Why”, which is ensuring that our students are navigating this disruption without pressure.

Some school districts have closed. How does that affect the spring season?

State, health and educational mandates and recommendations will take precedence in discussions leading to April 30. The cancellation of in-building instruction and athletics, as well as the closure of many HS and collegiate facilities will definitely be considered.

Will the summer be a consideration for the spring season?

If statewide spring activities and athletics are cancelled, we would not conduct a summer season outside of the educational construct. If the spring season is cancelled and once the defined school year ends, no events would be conducted.

This is not about creativity or an unwillingness to think outside the box. Our staff does that very well when inclement weather or facility availability disrupts an event.

This is a statewide health emergency and a statewide safety situation, and as a result a potential cancellation would end of the season.

Can students and/or coaches have access to school facilities during the moratorium?

No, per the Governor’s executive order all school facilities must remain closed through April 30.

April 14, 2020