| EMUHSD Student-Athletes and Families,
Earlier this week, in response to the continued increases in COVID-19 cases throughout the state, the California Interscholastic Federation (CIF) Southern Section announced that playoff and championship games for fall sports have been canceled. This impacts student-athletes who participate in football, traditional competitive cheer, cross country and volleyball.
With the State’s current “Stay-at-Home” order extended for Los Angeles County through the end of January, it is likely that the county will remain in the most restrictive purple tier, which signifies widespread COVID-19 infections and restricts a majority of athletic competitions for youth sports.
Although recent reporting from the Department of Public Health shows a slight decline in COVID-19 cases within the county, the numbers are still significantly high when compared to the data from the start of the school year. Under Governor Newsom’s proposed plan to safely reopen schools, counties with a seven-day average of fewer than 28 cases per 100,000 residents would be eligible to open. Los Angeles County is experiencing far higher rates of transmission and schools would not be expected to reopen for some time, with the exception of elementary schools that previously applied for a waiver.
District administration, school principals and athletic directors have been at the forefront of efforts to provide physical outlets for our students since the pandemic began. Our District has provided athletic pods for small cohorts of students for conditioning and workouts since last fall. These athletic pods were developed with guidance from the Los Angeles County Department of Health’s Reopening Protocol for Youth Sports League, which includes strict protocols on safety measures while students are on campus. Due to a surge in COVID-19 cases throughout our community, the District suspended all athletic pods in December 2020 for all high school programs until January 31, 2021.
At this time, the District believes that it has done everything possible for our fall student-athletes to prepare for the season of competition under limited circumstances. Unfortunately, the timing of the recent COVID-19 surge continues to challenge our fall sports season.
The health and safety of our students continue to be our priority. The lack of preparation time required for competition places immense pressure on our student-athletes and coaches. Most importantly, it jeopardizes the safety of our students. As a result, the El Monte Union High School District has decided to cancel the fall sports season for the 2020-21 school year including football, traditional competitive cheer, cross country and volleyball. It was a difficult decision to make, we realize the significance of this decision and we are committed to continuing to develop plans for a safe return to play for the spring season as defined in the CIF Season 2 schedule.
While we prepare for the spring season, we plan to resume our outdoor athletic pods for our student-athletes just as soon as the Stay-at-Home orders are lifted and the Department of Public Health provides further guidance. As a reminder, athletic pods are restricted to limited outdoor workouts/conditioning and the District will follow all protocols provided by the Department of Public Health.
Thank you again for your partnership, flexibility and patience as we navigate this challenging and unprecedented chapter in EMUHSD’s history together. As we have done since the onset of COVID-19, we will continue to closely monitor this situation and follow guidelines from expert health agencies and CIF, while keeping our community informed.
Please also visit the EMUHSD Return to Play page on the District’s website for updates, information and resources.
Sincerely,
Edward A. Zuniga, Ed.D.
Superintendent |
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