No Fall Sports: IL Elementary School Association

ILLINOIS — The Illinois Elementary School Association has made its decision: no fall sports due to the coronavirus. With school set to begin in August — some districts opting for remote learning, others in-person classes and still others a hybrid schedule — the IESA announced its decision Thursday.

"After much discussion, the Board unanimously approved to cancel the regular season and IESA state series in the sports of boys and girls golf, boys baseball, girls softball, and boys and girls cross-country for the 2020-21 school year," the organization said in a statement. "There are no plans to try and re-schedule the activities or conduct them later in the school year in part due to if and when high schools in Illinois play their contests. ... The Board will meet again in late August to make a decision regarding girls basketball."

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The board acknowledged that the decision will be divisive, and some will applaud it while others will be strongly opposed.

"COVID-19 has changed the world," the IESA said, putting the decision in perspective with a statement:

However, this decision is not the end of the world. It is not the news that most students and parents want. At the end of the day, we work with junior high and middle school students. They are not professional athletes; they are not college athletes; they are not high school athletes. They will not be missing out on any college scholarships. These are mainly 12-14 year old kids who likely will have many more opportunities to participate (perhaps even later this school year in other activities).

The board also noted that while some summer sports are taking place, youth summer sports are not held to Illinois Department of Public Health standards the way schools are.

"At the forefront of the Board decision is that the activities must be conducted within the current limitations that have been placed on the schools by the IDPH," IESA said, adding, "In particular, the mandate that there can be no physical contact between athletes and that students must be socially distanced (6 ft. of separation) makes the administration and conduct of games and contests very difficult and in some cases impossible to adhere to the mandates."

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Meanwhile, the Illinois High School Association has not yet come to a decision on whether sports will be postponed until 2021.

Does the IESA decision mean the IHSA will do the same? "I don't think so," IHSA executive director Craig Anderson told the Peoria Journal Star. But he did believe some direction will be coming this week from the IHSA.

"When our board convenes Wednesday, I think they will be looking at this strictly through a high school lens and reach a conclusion that is best for our member high schools," Anderson said.