Additional Information
Activities- Athletic Philosophy
Athletics is an important part of the educational program. Participation in a formalized athletic program contributes to health, happiness, physical skills, emotional maturity, social competence, and sound moral values. Athletic involvement can help teach the values of cooperation as well as the spirit of competition. Coaches are to give full consideration to the development of the total athlete, including emphasis on academic performance. We adopt the philosophy of “athletes first, winning second.” Our goal is to win, but when an athlete’s well-being and winning come in conflict, the athlete’s welfare comes first. Participation and skill development are important at the lower levels with the activity becoming more selective and competitive as athletes progress through the program. Athletes are representatives of Somers School District #29 and are expected to behave in an exemplary manner.
Athletic Programs
The following supervised athletic programs are offered at Somers:
Football- 7 & 8 Grade (Boys)
Basketball - Grades 5 - 8 (Boys and Girls)
Volleyball - Grades 7 - 8 (Girls)
Fall Cross-Country Running - Grades 6 - 8 (Boys and Girls)
Spring Cross-Country Running - Grades K - 6
Track - 7 & 8 Grade (Boys and Girls).
1. Students do not pay a fee to participate.
2. Students will travel to out-of-town events on official district transportation. Students will need to travel home from events with their parent / legal guardians. Students may be released to no one other than their parents or legal guardians unless prior arrangements have been made.
Activity and Athletic Eligibility (Good Standing)
In order to be eligible for any organized, extracurricular activity, including field trips, a student of grades 5 through 8 must adhere to the following policy:
All students who participate in athletics are required to show proof from the current school year that they have passed a physical examination by a medical professional prior to participation in any practices or games.
Students must attend at least 5 practices before competing in a game.
The student must be in Good Standing for Academics, Behavior, Attendance, and have all the requires Paperwork handed in.
Academics:
The Good Standing list for athletics will be generated on Wednesday to allow students until Friday at 3:30 to turn in assignments. The final Good Standing lists will be generated Monday morning at 8:00am. If a student does not meet eligibility requirements, he/she will not participate in games during that one week, Monday through Sunday (Maximum of 2 games in the week or ⅕ of the season). If there are more than 2 games during the week the student must have their grades up to at least a C- the day prior to the 3rd game to participate in any following games. Students are invited to practice when ineligible (although the coach may ask them to sit and complete work during practice).
Behavior:
When a student receives an office discipline referral (ODR) and falls out of Good Standing for behavior, he/she will miss the very next game/event (one game). In the case of a tournament- one day’s worth of events will be missed. Although a student is still considered on “probation” for 10 days, he/she will only miss one game. During the probation period, a student cannot have any more behavior incidents or the probation starts over and at least one more game will be missed. (Please see the Behavior Rubric located at the end of the district handbook.)
Attendance:
Students must be present by 9:00am on the day of a practice or game to be eligible for extracurricular events. The only exception to this is if the student has a doctor's appointment of any type (medical, dental, eye, counseling, etc.) and provides the office (or your coach if it is after school hours) a doctor's note.
Paperwork:
Aside from the required physical, students are required to have a signed athletic waiver and concussion statement handed in signed by the player and the parent. Students will not be allowed to participate in any contest until the paperwork is completed and handed in.
ATHLETIC LINKS