For many students sports are a fundamental part of the high school experience, however, in 2020 North’s athletic programs have had to be adapted as a result of the COVID 19 pandemic.

To ensure the safety of their students North put out a series of guidelines to reduce the likelihood that any students or coaches contract COVID 19. These guidelines include requiring masks at all times except during strenuous physical activity, getting rid of shared hydration stations, banning all workouts in the weight room that require a spotter and reducing the locker rooms to half capacity. Beyond that individual sports have rewritten schedules and their own set of rules. For example, the North Color Guard has had to reduce the regularity of their practices and has cancelled all their competitions. 

These precautions only work if everyone follows them and for the time being, that seems to be the case. Andrew Hodson the North’s athletic director explained, “Our athletes and coaches have been working hard to follow protocols to keep our seasons going as safely as they can.  We are almost a month into the official fall season and things have been going very well overall.  We are just taking it day by day.”

Despite all of the changes, some student athletes responded positively to how North is handling sports during the pandemic. Alex Ochs, a member of the Color Guard, was disappointed about some of the compromises the school had to make as a result of the pandemic.

 “I know it is for the best and I’m honestly just grateful that we have a season at all,” Ochs said. However, he recognizes the necessity of these guidelines. “I think they are doing their best to keep us safe while still allowing us to participate in the activity we love,” he said.