High schools sports are vital to the development of young people
It is a shame that freshman sports are going to be cut at the high school levels. I was born and raised in Ann Arbor and played football at Pioneer High School from 1982-84.
I feel the real reason why the Ann Arbor School Board has made those cuts is because the City of Ann Arbor itself is not making enough money from revenues in taxes. The City of Ann Arbor lost a big amount of tax revenue when Pfizer left Ann Arbor, but many buildings all through the city occupied by tax paying entities are gone and replaced by an entity that does not have to pay taxes.
City road construction is hurting, but the non-paying tax entity does not lift a finger to help the schools or road construction that will help traffic reach their stadium this coming fall. I have learned that this non-paying tax entity has a $14 billion surplus.
Other counties are able to maintain a seventh- and eighth-grade football program - surrounding Ann Arbor - why not Ann Arbor ? They are keeping freshman sports too.
In my opinion, all sports are vital for the development of young people. They teach leadership and work ethic skills that can not be learned at home. Also, sports help reduce obesity rates in young teenagers and promote health. Also, sports mold successful adults.
My football teammates at Ann Arbor Pioneer High School from 1982-1984 are all successful men - professionals at their chosen careers. Each day everyone of them does something important for society. Our experiences in sports contributed to this fact. Moreover, perhaps it is time for The University of Michigan to become a private institution.
John Sheridan Koernke
President of Football Quest International Inc.
Comments
Sandy Castle
Tue, Jul 5, 2011 : 12:20 a.m.
Following the rationale of many of the commenters here that sports are not necessary to a well-rounded education then I would have to say that I also expect to see art, theatre, and music cut and ask the question, should we only fund reading, writing and arithmetic for our children? Kids benefit from all of these programs, but not all of the kids participate in many of them and none of them are "necessary" to a basic education, it's true. But along with the valuable skills that the kids learn from all of these extracurricular activities these programs can also motivate some of these kids to stay interested in other classes and to keep their grades up so they can stay eligible to participate. Some commenters have said that not many kids participate in high school sports, but as I was watching the school board meeting last week, one of the board members referred to the number of kids who the administration said participate in at least one high school sport in Ann Arbor's high schools and that number was 50%.
John B.
Wed, Jul 6, 2011 : 9:45 p.m.
I would place funding for the arts above funding for football every single time. Not even a difficult choice.
DonBee
Tue, Jul 5, 2011 : 3:44 a.m.
Sandy Castle - I doubt the 50% number, I highly do. The insurance numbers show at MOST 38%. Everyone has to pay insurance premiums to the school to play on a team. The problem with the insurance number is that it may or may not include the AAPS contribution. If it does the number is closer to 20% than 38% if it does not it might be 38%. What we also don't know is do any children pay insurance more than once? If they do the number goes down from there. AAPS has declined for "privacy reasons" to give out a count by sport of the number of students playing. So no one other than the district has the real numbers and they are not talking.
say it plain
Mon, Jul 4, 2011 : 6:48 p.m.
TerryStar21, I see that some people are willing to make weird assumptions and implications about what people's skills are, what they do for a living, etc. and that they are missing the point some others of us are making. We are trying to say that paying tax dollars for kids to *compete in varsity sports* should not be treated as a "you can bet on it continuing!" birthright, especially given current budget considerations. In my opinion, and I can see that you feel differently, school monies could be better spent on giving *all* students the benefit of participating in life-enhancing activities. That would include exercise/sports, and programs to help us do better in all those areas where nations that *don't spend so much energy on in-school sports* have us beat--you know, math, science, reading, writing.
Terry Star21
Mon, Jul 4, 2011 : 6:16 p.m.
I think many of the commenters here have missed the point. It is not about how well you do in sports after school - how many succeed in their sports or how much money or popularity success they have in your sport. High school sports are about fun, exercise and most importantly - education for your adult life. Yes, the classroom is excellent in it's education hands down. However, sports participation teaches self respect, competitiveness, leadership, teamwork, and shapes personality skills - things needed in life that sometimes doesn't receive enough attention in the classroom. What good is it to be the most knowledgeable or skillful person in ones trade, yet lack the important people skills listed above ? Good luck ! And to those here berating others writing, writing skills, abilities, or (athletes going to jail) you really missed it - the chance to participate in sports and become better people ! Fun for a teenager - while learning respect, leadership, and lifelong teamwork skills - priceless !
say it plain
Mon, Jul 4, 2011 : 7:06 p.m.
Hmm, I think there are people who reasonably argue that there is very much a 'price' associated with serious varsity sports--and we are arguing that it is not worth it. I am not saying that playing sports is bad, not at all. Indeed, I think that ridding our schools of highly serious competitive varsity sports could open the way to *more* students feeling the benefits from sports that you advocate so strongly! Imagine if instead of spending all that time with the kids who've been playing competitively already for years in some cases, we had phys ed teachers helping kids who may have missed out on the joys of teamwork and self-respect that sports can instill!? Getting them to work on a sport they enjoy and learn to compete in it even, but not versus other schools with travel and so on, but rather with their schoolmates, in friendly engaging games? The kids who still wanted to compete seriously and travel could do so in clubs, or in other sports organizations. You should avoid creating a false equivalence here. Being against the school-based funding of serious competitive sports is *not* the same as being against physical education *or* sports.
Dog Guy
Mon, Jul 4, 2011 : 5:28 p.m.
In my opinion, all sports are vital for the development of young people. They demonstrate prowess to the opposite sex.
TruBlue
Mon, Jul 4, 2011 : 1:09 p.m.
Lol. I love how the opinion is about funding HS football then at the end, the author decides to throw a random comment about UM. It really comes down to what is more important: kids that can read and write or kids that can run a post out pattern?
debling
Mon, Jul 4, 2011 : 4:03 a.m.
HELLO!!!! You go to school to learn, not play games. All non academic activities must be self funding. You want to play varsity football, cough up the money. Parents who want a Taj Mahal stadium for your prima donna pay the $10 or $20 at the gate to cover the cost of the field. Look around us at the ridiculous amount of money we spend on high school sports, stadiums, varsity apparel, etc., while our academic performance is dismal. China and Brazil are only too happy to see thousands of us downing hot dogs on a Friday night while our marching bands and pom squads cheer on our "next leaders".
DonBee
Tue, Jul 5, 2011 : 3:40 a.m.
Terry Star21 - I played football and ran track in High School, I also wrestled the one year the school had a team. I played even played sports in college. But the best thing to happen to me was not sports but life skills in health and daily required exercise.
say it plain
Mon, Jul 4, 2011 : 7:19 p.m.
TerryStar21, it does not serve your arguments well to reply like that, it really doesn't.
Terry Star21
Mon, Jul 4, 2011 : 6:20 p.m.
Let me guess - you didn't participate in sports and became a high school administrator, correct ?
DonBee
Mon, Jul 4, 2011 : 12:15 p.m.
Johnnya2 - To a large extent the funding for chess club, et. al. has been cut. Teachers and staff members now do this on their own time to a large extent. Only sports survived last year mostly uncut. Funds to pay points for non-coaching (read non-sports) were cut from the agreement between the teacher's union and the school district for the 2010-2011 school year. No one raised a fuss. Now that someone wants to take roughly $475,000 from a roughly $12,000,000 sports budget (see other threads for how this number is calculated) everyone is unhappy.
johnnya2
Mon, Jul 4, 2011 : 11:51 a.m.
" All non academic activities must be self funding" Define these? Chess club? Spanish club? Student council? Music? Band? Computers? Then of course we can watch as poorer students are told there is no interest in keeping their attention focused on school since they have no goal to keep grades high enough to participate, or no chance to socialize. You may want your children to live the Chinese dream, but we prefer democracy and well rounded people.
David Paris
Mon, Jul 4, 2011 : 2:33 a.m.
I disagree that The U show go private. For one thing, if you think that the loss of Pfizer hurt, it is inconceivable what would happen to this town if the University were to go private. Otherwise, I agree that the loss of freshman sports is going to hurt our students, and is an unnecessary cut. This issue make Skyline High look like a seriously bad decision, and the tax payers are not the ones that should be punished for it.
Robert Stone
Sun, Jul 3, 2011 : 9:41 p.m.
All of this complaining about high school sports just shows how spoiled people in Ann Arbor have become. When I was in high school we had football and that was it. No football at the middle school level either. And you know what we did? We actually went to organized soccer, etc, OUTSIDE of school! I know it's very hard to believe, but it actually is possible for third parties to organize this kind of stuff without help from a school district. Believe it or not you don't absolutely have to have a high school water polo team either. I know, you are thinking "amazing that it might be possible to organize sports for kids outside of school or some sort of government program," but believe me, the the physical properties of the universe don't actually prevent it. Perhaps all the millionaires in town would like to contribute their money to this. Some people just don't seem to understand that not everyone in town is wealthy.
John B.
Wed, Jul 6, 2011 : 9:39 p.m.
Respect, teamwork, and leadership occur in classes all day long....
Terry Star21
Mon, Jul 4, 2011 : 6:24 p.m.
Robert - you missed it. Sports are about the chance to continue education, through respect, teamwork, leadership, etc. - things sometimes missed in the classroom.
johnnya2
Mon, Jul 4, 2011 : 11:46 a.m.
So basically football good, water polo bad? Though we all know the most expensive sport is football with huge teams with major amounts of equipment and traveling. Lots of coaches on staff, and a much bigger chance for catastrophic injury. Take a look at brain injury data for people who play football. No matter i you like the sport or not (and I am a fan of it), the toll it takes on a young skull with repetitive pounding against objects is not good. It has been linked to suicides and onset of dementia.
hscheckers
Sun, Jul 3, 2011 : 8:24 p.m.
lol... "say it plain" thinks we should get rid of varsity sports funding a priority... Really?! Participating in sports is great for students. It provides a social outlet that just going to school doesn't offer, it teaches kids important lessons and life skills, and it gives students something to do with their time. There are so many positive things that come out of participating in sports. Yes, students could participate in after school programs and clubs. Although, having recently graduated from Pioneer, I can say clubs don't produce the same results as athletics. Most students are in clubs so they can put it on their college application to say they were involved in after school activities. The proposed budget cuts will eliminate funding for some varsity sports and all freshman programs throughout all three Ann Arbor Public High Schools. This will essentially save about .35% of the budget. There are other ways to save this amount of money without eliminating so many important opportunities for students.
John B.
Wed, Jul 6, 2011 : 9:38 p.m.
Yeah, right to the auto. dealership or insurance agency....
Terry Star21
Mon, Jul 4, 2011 : 6:27 p.m.
Hs - you got it ! I'll bet like me, you played high school sports and maybe didn't excel after HS in sports - but you took with you respect, leadership, teamwork, etc. that helped you greatly in life !
hscheckers
Sun, Jul 3, 2011 : 8:38 p.m.
im aware i messed up the first line. get rid of 'a priority' at the end
DonBee
Sun, Jul 3, 2011 : 8:24 p.m.
Daily physical activity for all, training in exercise and life sports are far more important than sports to people's future. I can point to people in the business club or the FFA that are all successes today from my high school. Most of the football players in my high school are following the family path, farming, logging, working in the feed mill, etc. Roughly 10 children per state per year get a chance to play professional football (544 draft slots) and more than half of those do not make a team (taxi squads, out of football, etc). More than half of the remainder are out of football within 2 years. So 2 children per state will ever really have a chance each year to make a living playing football. Far more than that end up with career ending (and lifestyle limiting) injuries each year. Roughly 4,000 children can expect to be offered a college scholarship for football in the US each year. (There are 245 teams offering from 0 to 25 scholarships a year). So 80 children per year per state get a chance to go to college and play football. Given in Michigan there are 550 school districts, that means most districts will never see a college player and most of the rest one every 2 or 3 years. I suspect, if most schools are like mine was, someone each year ends up with a broken leg or worse during the season. NO, football (I played in High School and beyond) is not something that offers a future and leadership. It offers pain and hard work. Better is Yoga, and a heavy dose of Heinz Lentz's life skills for all children every morning.
pseudo
Sun, Jul 3, 2011 : 6:54 p.m.
I will echo Ghost: Baloney! The VAST majority of high school kids do not play high school sports. I would go a bit further, sports are not "Vital" to learning leadership and work ethic skills. Is it possible to learn those in sports? Maybe- i question that on the face of it. Academics, a strong concentration on academics teaches real team work, real worth ethic, and real leadership skills much better than sports ever could because you have to earn your way with the same things that will get you somewhere in the 'real' world outside of school. Not by your bigger body or your stronger arms or your ability to beat/bully someone else. And not the good ol' hero boy network that sets up all those car dealerships.
say it plain
Mon, Jul 4, 2011 : 6:11 p.m.
Oh wait, our friend TS is allowed to plaster this 'accusation' all over lol! It must *indeed* be the name-calling of choice for playground bullies, d'oh! I feel better now, I thought somehow there was something in my sentence structure that smacked of 'inefficient bureaucrat' lol, but I see now that it's merely what he's saying to people who disagree with him! It's not a great reflection on the sports-breeds-character argument, just to say ;-)
tim
Sun, Jul 3, 2011 : 6:06 p.m.
One of best things that sports provides is that it keeps kids moving. Kids with too much spare time tend to get into more trouble. Although athletics isn't the only activity to keep kids busy it is a good one. To some It may seem like a waste of tax payers money, but there are plenty of school activities that enhance a childs life while growing up that they will abandon later in life.
tim
Mon, Jul 4, 2011 : 3:17 a.m.
Unfortunately we live in a very competitive world. High school sports are a metaphor for the real world-- so I think that's a good thing. Kids that are not athletic should be encouraged to follow their gifts and not criticize others that don't share the same blessings.
say it plain
Sun, Jul 3, 2011 : 6:15 p.m.
Without serious competitive sports programs at our taxpayer-funded schools, we could pay instead for programs that would allow many more kids to participate in after-school athletic activities. Without a 'serious' football team, for instance, kids could have flag-football clubs after school, maybe even with instruction and such. Without 'serious' basketball teams, for instance, kids could have round-robin three-on-threes, maybe even with instruction. Even with 'no-cut' teams of various sorts, if we didn't spend the resources on this thing Americans do of serious competitive sports at even the middle and highschool levels, we could get more kids involved in these good-for-you after-school athletic programs.
Terry Star21
Sun, Jul 3, 2011 : 5:19 p.m.
John my friend - you are so right; "In my opinion, all sports are vital for the development of young people. They teach leadership and work ethic skills that can not be learned at home. Also, sports help reduce obesity rates in young teenagers and promote health. Also, sports mold successful adults." This is probably the single most important statement I have seen since, these talks began. Anyone that denies this, most likely figured sports were too much work as considered to sitting at the computer after school, drinking cokes and listening to an ipod. Oh yes - these people were $uccessful, you bet. Also bet that they missed something very important in their life, many of them haven't figured it out yet - just know that empty, unfulfilled feeling. Speaking of betting John, bet two things; #1. A2 school administration will sacrifice student needs for their pay and more administrators than needed. #2. And most importantly - There will be freshman sports at Ann Arbor Public Schools this fall and every year that follows - take it to the bank ! Administration politics and scaring teachers and students with layoffs/sports cuts has been a practice of those officials for a long time - and they fail badly (send them to summer school). I can see John by your statement above, you have developed very well - and I attribute your experience in sports as the biggest asset in your life.
say it plain
Mon, Jul 4, 2011 : 7:15 p.m.
And I can also tell, TS, that you seem to have been offended by my implication that a person's writing may suffer if they focus on sports instead...I didn't mean to offend. It was a response to the implication that people who didn't participate in varsity sports were somehow lazy or without skill, and that people who don't feel as you do about varsity sports must somehow feel empty and not know why lol. It doesn't serve as a good example of the utility of competitive sports in fostering 'good character', imho.
say it plain
Mon, Jul 4, 2011 : 6:03 p.m.
yes, TS, I can see so well how you feel ;-)
Terry Star21
Mon, Jul 4, 2011 : 5:54 p.m.
I'm sorry that some people didn't play high school sports - you can see in their 'opinions' the anger and frustration of not enjoying such activities, and I feel for them.
Edward R Murrow's Ghost
Sun, Jul 3, 2011 : 8:12 p.m.
TS: Speaking as a former HS athlete and as a parent of HS athletes, it is my experience that HS athletes are more likely to have inflated opinions about themselves than non-athletes. And, in my experience, far too many HS athletes come to believe that the rules simply do not apply to them. Time to stop romanticizing about HS athletics. Good Night and Good Luck
FredMax
Sun, Jul 3, 2011 : 4:34 p.m.
I'd agree that sports can be a great contributor to the development of young people. However, it is not a given that these sports should even be funded by taxes. In many countries, schools simply do not have sports teams; sports are a private enterprise, entirely independent of school. Perhaps these many successful football men from 1982-1984 could fund the freshman sports through their own private contributions.
say it plain
Sun, Jul 3, 2011 : 4:10 p.m.
You know what's also amusing?! How the Ann Arbor.com is currently also following a story about a kid who played HS sports, and is currently in trouble with the law for running over little baby ducks lol. He took the sports seriously enough that he wants to try and make it a career indeed! Just exactly the kind of 'serious competitive sports' scene that we've been funding with our school dollars. Just to offer a counter-example to the claims about how wonderful sports are for developing leaders and ethical behavior and all. Why not spend some of the resources we use for varsity sports on courses *that actually teach/support/foster community service and involvement"?! Seems a more direct and inclusive route to the 'contribute to society' goal. Why not fund courses that would help students find the sport or fitness activity they most enjoy--be it running, tennis, basketball, yoga, etc.--and teach them how to incorporate this into a healthy lifestyle that keeps them active and fit? Many kids who end up obese or inactive are actually *turned off* by the competitive sports scene, and their 'poor performance' in such activities contributes to a self-fulfilling prophesy of inactivity and poor lifestyle choices. This has actually been shown by people at the forefront of bringing truly game-changing physical education into schools, the kinds of programs that lift achievement and end problem behaviors. I wouldn't mind an Athletic Director in every school if they were overseeing these kinds of inclusive and engaging programs for our kids. Great for the kids who are good at sports and who find them motivational and exciting and for their parents who find them developmentally 'useful'. But these varsity teams really do function as 'clubs' except for our willingness to spend *everyone's* resources on them, so why not make the funding match the function.
David Paris
Tue, Jul 5, 2011 : 12:37 a.m.
As reasonable as your argument sounds, in real life it is impractical. If you don't want the best for your kids that's okay, but there are many parents who do want the absolute best. That's why many move to Ann Arbor in the first place. And, if a parent want's their kids in interscholastic sports, then they will choose to send their children to a school district that provides greater value, it's simple economics. So, unless you can convince all Michigan School districts to turn the clock back about fifty years, then you should support interscholastic sports. I'm in!
say it plain
Mon, Jul 4, 2011 : 5:56 p.m.
Now, now, sportydude TerryStar21, you shouldn't let your learned-on-the-field dissing stylings seep ooze out in inappropriate places ;-)
say it plain
Mon, Jul 4, 2011 : 5:54 p.m.
Why does TerryStar21 keep saying that I am an AAPS administrator lol, and then my posts asking for clarification are left up while his comments are erased?! C'mon moderators, get to it ;-)
Terry Star21
Mon, Jul 4, 2011 : 5:51 p.m.
I understand completely that you are an A2 school administrator. I am very sorry if you had no skills and couldn't play sports - but I'l bet if you stuck with it you would have learned, got very good and enjoyed these sports. don't cheat our youth from these sports - they are our future !
tim
Mon, Jul 4, 2011 : 2:07 p.m.
Public schools fund plenty of functions that are just about useless ( if your cynical and want to see it that way) like art, music, theater, foreign languish etc. After graduation the majority of kids never practice any of those skills. We fund those activities to expose young minds to the possibility's in the world ,and if they like it we offer advanced classes to expand those skills. Sport is the same, we have recreational sports and we offer and we offer advanced ( JV/Varsity ) sports.
a2citizen
Sun, Jul 3, 2011 : 3:50 p.m.
"...perhaps it is time for The University of Michigan to become a private institution..." After filing for bankruptcy the athletic department would be spun off because it is a self-sustaining, profit making entity.
a2citizen
Sun, Jul 3, 2011 : 3:29 p.m.
"...perhaps it is time for The University of Michigan to become a private institution..." They would have to declare bankruptcy.
John B.
Wed, Jul 6, 2011 : 9:32 p.m.
I don't think so. Why do you say that? Less than 8% of their budget comes from the State of Michigan.
say it plain
Sun, Jul 3, 2011 : 2:59 p.m.
Lol...the President of "Football Quest International Inc." thinks we should keep varsity sports funding a high priority... Really?! Yes, Mr. Koernke, participating in sports is great for kids, as is exercise generally. Let's make sure all kids who want to get some sports instruction and some exercise in schools do so. If we eliminate varsity sports *all together* then we can probably fund lots more sports programs that could allow *all students* to acquire the organization and team-focused skills that sports might instill. The kids who learn leadership and "successful competitive professional" skills at Pioneer can do so with clubs or other types of sports-focused organizations which don't use taxpayer money. We could use the money to teach writing skills instead, to all our kids :-) In Europe--where I think it can be shown there are a couple of successful adults here and there--schools don't pay for sports like we do here.
say it plain
Mon, Jul 4, 2011 : 6:07 p.m.
My post above refers to a comment TerryStar21 made about how I must be an AAPS administrator, whatever that's supposed to mean ( I guess he believes they don't think varsity sports are very important? Or is that just the name-calling of choice these days among playground bullies lol?), and I asked if that was a joke or something, but his original post has been deleted with no left-over "comment has been deleted" and my comment was left up, seeming all bare and hard to interpret there now... Since the moderators seem to be taking a little break I thought I'd just clarify ;-)
say it plain
Mon, Jul 4, 2011 : 5:50 p.m.
Is that supposed to be a joke? I don't get it...
Edward R Murrow's Ghost
Sun, Jul 3, 2011 : 2:45 p.m.
Baloney. The vast majority of students never play HS sports. Good Night and Good Luck
TruBlue
Mon, Jul 4, 2011 : 1:11 p.m.
+1000000000
Craig Lounsbury
Sun, Jul 3, 2011 : 2:26 p.m.
"Moreover, perhaps it is time for The University of Michigan to become a private institution." So they will pay taxes to fund 9th grade sports?