Kansas City, Kansas, school board suspends fall participation in KSHSAA activities
The Kansas City, Kansas, school board voted Tuesday to suspend all fall sports.
The board’s vote, 5-2, means the district won’t participate in any Kansas State High School Athletic Association activities this fall, the board said.
The following activities are included: football, volleyball, cross country, girls tennis, boys soccer, marching band and spirit squad.
While there will not be any band performances, band will still be a class option.
The decision will let the district evaluate the status of winter sports at a later date as it continues to monitor cases of COVID-19.
In July, KSHSAA decided, over Zoom, to not postpone fall activities. The organization’s director, Bill Faflick, said during a July 28 board meeting that KSHSAA is aware of the climb in COVID-19 cases.
“With all of these competitions, there’s going to be times where schools cannot participate because they are going to have to quarantine or they’re going to have to sit aside,” Faflick said.
Lee Norman, secretary of the Kansas Department of Health and Environment, said during a news conference last week that KSHSAA’s decision is “unlikely to be successful.”
Practices for fall sports across the state can start Aug. 17. Games and competitions begin as early as Aug. 21.
