7-0 vote from the Board of Education prohibits sports to resume until second semester
Frederick, MD (KB) There will be no fall sports for Frederick County Public Schools. During Wednesday night’s meeting, the Board of Education voted 7 to 0 to not allow high school sports to resume until second semester.
“We had a discussion,” said Board President, Brad Young, “majority of the board felt that at this time it is not safe to put kids in close contact back on playing fields or on the courts.”
Training and conditioning, however, is currently in session under controlled conditions. “We have been bringing students back for conditioning and under those controlled circumstances, those students are socially distanced and they are wearing masks, and so therefore, we feel that we can do that safely,” explained Young.
He said the state athletic directors are asking the Maryland Public Secondary Schools Athletic Association (MPSSAA) to start second semester sports in December instead of February. This would allow for a more complete season for the teams.
Young added there were several cases of coronavirus in their ‘Return To Play’ program. Those infected were isolated and quarantined so the virus would not spread further.
The system was designed to keep athletes in “pods” — smaller groups of teams who practiced with the same teammates and coaches so potential outbreaks could be more easily contained.
Fall sports will, however, return to schools in Washington, Garrett, and Allegany County.