SYRACUSE N.Y. (NCC News) – The Syracuse City Schools are gearing up for contact sports this fall amid surges in COVID-19 cases.
The School District plans to find a balance between contact sports and COVID-19 safety protocols to ensure the safety of the students. Onondaga County Executive Ryan McMahon announced schools would require masks indoors when students return to school this September, yet there is no current mandate on sports.
“We are going forward with sports at all levels. And there are individual COVID protocols that have to be followed for each sport. And that’s going to be sport dependent,” the city of Syracuse School District Board of Education President Dan Romeo said.
Romeo said things like health screenings and sideline mask-wearing are going to be mandatory throughout the season. Romeo said sports are a significant aspect of a student’s school experience. One most students have missed out on during the COVID-19 pandemic.
“It’s always super important to protect our students. The health and safety of our students should be our number one goal, and that’s what we are trying to do,” said Romeo.
Romeo said there is no specific plan for the rising COVID numbers. Although if the county gets to the high-level COVID case stage, he imagines the district will try its hardest not to take the sports away if they can help it. Romeo said the district would continue to follow the guidance of Onondaga County COVID mandates.
