High schools get back to business
Prep teams set to start summer contact
Prep sports comes out of hibernation Wednesday.
July 1 marks the end of Gov. Tony Evers' order to close the state's public and private schools. That mandate, which aimed to mitigate the spread of the coronavirus, also prohibited all interscholastic activities.
With that directive suspended, athletes and coaches can return to school and the field.
The WIAA is allowing fall and winter sports the traditional five days of school-sponsored summer coaching contact that is voluntary for athletes. Spring sports were given up to 30 days of contact this year as a consolation for the loss of the entire spring season. Schools will be able to resume weight training and off-season condition as well.
In preparation for prep sports during the pandemic, the WIAA gave schools 16 pages of guidance for summer activities and then offered 44 pages of sport-specific guidelines.
The WIAA considers the documents as recommendations rather than hard-and-fast rules for summertime contact. They provide the framework of policies and protocols that many districts are using, but there are expected to be differences based on the level of threat around the state and the needs of communities.
The situation is so fluid some athletic directors were still finalizing their summer plans this week. There are still a lot of unknowns out there, but here are a few things to watch.
Hot spots
Two of the hottest spots in the state for COVID-19, Milwaukee and Racine Counties, are proceeding with caution.
Milwaukee Public Schools and a handful of districts in the county will not take advantage of the additional summer contact days available to spring sports but will offer five days of summer contact.
The Racine Unified School District, which runs Case, Horlick and Park, will offer the additional summer contact days for its spring sports but at the onset will have no competitions. Fall and winter sports in that district can offer virtual coaching. Jack Klebsadel, Racine’s city-wide athletic director, said the district will review the situation in midJuly and change its plan if necessary.
The City of Milwaukee enters Phase 4 of its reopening plan Wednesday. That allows businesses, churches and other aspects of daily life to increase the percentage capacity at which they operate. Most are going up to 50% capacity.
The risk of coronavirus in the county, however, remains high. Last week the state’s coronavirus activity level recorded a weekly rating of “high” from the state health department. The city’s Black community, which is largely served by MPS, has been hit hard by the virus, a factor on the mind of MPS athletic director Bobbie Kelsey as the district implements its guidelines.
“You don’t want to tell people straight no because mental and physical well being is important, too, but we know this COVID affects people differently,” she said. “Some people have a sniffle. Other people, unfortunately, pass away. We’re not going to put people in harms way just to play.”
With 21 schools, Kelsey is in charge of more athletic departments than any AD in the state. She doesn’t anticipate every sport at each school will take part in summer contact. Any plans for summer contact in the district must be approved by Kelsey’s office.
“If we have to get creative and make smaller groups and smaller pods then that is what we have to do,” she said. “At the district level, we have to think about everybody. Some schools want to do certain things, but we have to make sure everybody is on the same page."
Low risk in Waukesha County
A few miles west of Milwaukee County, sports are ramping back up as soon as allowed.
The WIAA made clear in its guidelines for resuming play last week that returning to sports would be a local decision made by health departments and individual schools. The risk level, which determines to what degree activity can resume, will also vary from community to community.
Some Waukesha County schools have assessed their risk level to be among the lowest in the area, and that means beginning summer contact starting on Wednesday.
“Waukesha County has approved indoor gatherings of 100,” Mukwonago athletic director Andy Trudell said. “That would fit into the ‘low risk’ category of what the WIAA recommendations were.”
Not all sports are beginning practice immediately, with the most common restart activity at first being summer strength and conditioning.
Getting back into the weight room in varying group sizes after months apart is an important first step for fall coaches.
While contact days for fall sports are more limited, spring sports, which were canceled, are allowed up to 30 days of summer contact. How that will look will vary from school to school and from sport to sport. Arrowhead, for example, is planning on hosting a track and field meet with modified safety rules on July 9; other sports won’t be utilizing any contact days.
Summer contact days are voluntary and safety protocols such as no shared water bottles and no locker room usage will be in place. Weight-room specific guidelines include spotters wearing masks and keeping students within the same groups.
The return to off-season conditioning and practice in some form is leaving athletic directors surveyed by the Journal Sentinel cautiously optimistic about fall competition taking place.
“Athletics are being played all over the state right now. Kids of all ages are playing baseball and softball,” Trudell said. “There are basketball and volleyball leagues and tournaments running. Wrestling state freestyle and Greco(Roman) are scheduled for early August in (Wisconsin) Dells.
“Additionally, in July the WIAA has authorized spring sports to play for 30 days. All that said, I think it would be very difficult to justify taking any fall opportunities away from our kids.”
Dealing with the virus
The WIAA recommends that anyone who has a temperature of 100.4 or higher or is experiencing symptoms commonly associated with COVID-19, such as chills, cough or difficulty breathing, stay home and contact their medical provider.
Coaches and students should be screened for symptoms prior to a workout, including a temperature check.
Those with coronavirus-related symptoms can’t return until they are both free of fever and respiratory symptoms without the use of fever-reducing medicine for at least three days and 10 days have passed since symptoms first appeared.
The guidelines don’t specifically include a procedure for when an athlete or coach who tests positive can return. Written medical clearance is also required to return.
The guidelines also note that those who have had close contact with a person who has symptoms should also be separated from group workouts and sent home.
Schools are recommended to designate a “COVID-19 coach” who serves as the point person for responding to coronavirus concerns and ensures proper social distancing is maintained during training.
Can students self-regulate?
A lot of the success of summertime contact will depend on the ability of students to police themselves.
According to WIAA guidelines, athletes are supposed to check their temperature before each workout/practice and stay away from the team if it is over 100.4. Symptoms such as a cough or sore throat could be easier to ignore, especially among people are used to shaking off minor ailments to stay on the field.
“It is not natural for high school students to be 6 feet apart or not congregate in groups to talk,” one athletic director wrote. “We will do our best to keep everyone safe but we all have to work together to make that happen.”