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Highlands Today

Sports Are An Important Part Of Our Children's Education

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The Tampa Tribune

Published: January 25, 2009

Highlands County School Board members, as well as school Superintendent Wally Cox and his staff, have worked hard to find cuts in the district's budget. Diminished revenue puts the squeeze on everyone. A comment tossed out during a recent meeting, however, caught a lot of attention. It was mentioned that perhaps junior varsity sports should be cut.

Board member Wally Randall made that statement during the conversation, but it wasn't a proposal. And we don't believe Randall advocates such a move. Some people do believe that way, however, and we think that's a mistake.

Cutting sports always is a sub-topic of conversation whenever education funding is in short supply. Making such statements grabs everyone's attention, and then the debate churns.

No one is as vocal about this as sports fans and parents whose children participate in school sports. Just as vocal are the people who think too many resources are funneled to sports programs at a cost to academics.

The truth of the matter, though, is that these two things - sports and academics - are one in the same. Both are important and neither should be excluded to bolster the other.

While most of us agree that sports are often over-hyped, it's also true that sports provide an outlet of critical importance for many students. In some instances, students wouldn't even be in school if sports didn't supply them an opportunity for success. In some cases they find guidance and leadership they might not find at home.

Other legitimate benefits exist as well, such as teamwork, life lessons, discipline, opportunities for scholarships and health benefits. But it also goes deeper than that.

Like it or not, school athletics are an important part of any community's fabric. It gives residents a reason to rally together, to feel proud and to see their children succeed. All of these things are positive for everyone.

Athletics, just like band, cheerleading and every other activity that some people place outside of pure academics, are critical to the betterment of our students and provide them with a rich educational environment. Of course learning writing, reading, math and history are key academic areas that students perform in, but it's also these other activities that make school extra special for most students.

Many of our fondest memories from our younger years are of great teachers, favorite classes and friends, but also about extracurricular activities such as sports, academic teams, band functions and dozens of things school-related but not necessarily academic.

When we look for cuts in education, we must take the same basic creed that doctors take before earning their licenses: Do no harm. That means lessening our children's education isn't an option. We can find savings and make tough choices without harming the crucial elements of a good education.

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