PARTICIPANT HANDBOOK
PROGRAM GOAL
The athletic experience
at all levels of competition should be considered an educational one. Students
should experience and develop and wide range of life experiences and skills.
Among these should be: the ability to set short and long term goals,
persistence in the face of adversity, graciousness in both victory and defeat,
and the willingness to sublimate the self for the good of the team and the
resulting camaraderie..
All parties to the
athletic experience should acknowledge that progress towards these goals is not
ultimately measured in victories, minutes played or individual glory and
honors. In many cases those things that the participant will value the most in
life do not become apparent until the days of competition are long past.
I. GENERAL INFORMATION
Program Website:
The
Athletic Department hosts a website which is currently located at:
http://www.oceansideschools.org/sports/index.htm
Please
visit for information related to district/team schedules, season start dates,
coaches’ roster and contact numbers, driving directions to most away fields
listed by school district, downloadable participation documents and team
offerings by season.
Prior to participation:
Any student interested in
participating in the OUFSD athletic program is expected to have on file with
their building nurse a Medical Examination that is less than one year old.
Additionally there must be a signed Parent Permission/Emergency
Locator/Interval Health History card on file with the coach of the team.
Students and parents are expected to read and abide by the terms Athletic
Agreement/Code of Conduct that will be distributed to each participant prior to
the season. These form are distributed by summer mailing, at informational
meetings, and can be downloaded off the district web site.
Informational meetings:
In advance of their season
of play sports coaches are expected to hold informational meetings. At these
meetings start dates, mandated forms, team rules/expectations, etc. are
discussed with students. The coaches of OHS fall sports are also expected to
hold meetings of this type for interested 8th graders at OMS during
the spring of their 7th grade year.
Try-outs:
Due to numerous factors not
all teams are able to accommodate every interested student. This requires that
the coaches of some teams must reduce the size of their roster through
competitive tryouts. Coaches are expected to set aside the first three days of
the season for tryouts and may extend that period if warranted for some or all
prospective team members. The length of the tryout period is necessarily brief
since the NYS Athletic Association mandates a certain number of practices by
sport prior to scrimmage or game. Practices in one sport are not transferable
to another. Tryouts of greater length than the first week of the season would
negatively impact a student’s possible eligibility for a sport of second
choice.
Seasons of play:
The NYS Athletic Association
mandates 4 seasons of competition at the middle school level and 3 seasons at
the high school level and sets the start/end dates for each season by level on
an annual basis. Middle school fall sports typically begin the first day of the
first week of school; expect your child to practice or meet with the
coach. High School fall sports begin in
August. Typically football begins practice at the start of the third week of
August with all others starting at the beginning of the fourth week.
Students participating in
high school sports should anticipate a six-day a week commitment (Mon-Sat) and
are expected to practice and compete over holiday breaks. Students
participating in middle school sports should anticipate a minimum five-day a
week commitment as practices or competitions not typically held on weekends or
holiday breaks.
Practices:
Team members are expected to
attend practices on a routine basis. The NYS Athletic Association mandates a
minimum number of practices per sport before an athlete becomes eligible for
scrimmages/games. Only one practice per day may be counted towards the total
and scrimmage/games days may not count towards the total. Absence from practice
on a day the athlete is in school should be reported as far ahead of time to
the coach as is possible. Students may not practice on a day when they have
been absent, suspended or not signed into school by 11 AM. While the state does
not mandate how many practices an athlete must have prior to competition
following an extended layoff from practice or competition due to injury,
illness, etc. coaches are expected to exercise good judgment and approach the
situation with caution.
Competitions:
Students may not compete on
a day when they have been absent, suspended or not signed into school by 11 AM.
Athletes are expected to travel to all contests with their team. Parents may,
with advance written notice to the coach, transport only their child from a
contest. Each incidence of such transportation from a contest requires
individual notice. Parents are expected to exercise restraint in exercising
this option as team unity and the positive social aspect of participation can
be affected when athletes depart early on a regular basis.
Athletes are expected to
exhibit good sportsmanship towards their opponents and teammates. Spectators,
whether home or away, are expected to model good behavior and cooperate with
the reasonable requests of event supervisors, coaches, and site administrators.
Vocal support for a child or team is appropriate. Negative behavior or speech
directed at any participants, coaches or officials, is not appropriate.
Equipment:
Athletes are expected to be
responsible for any team issued supplies and/or equipment and to maintain them
in the same condition as issued. Any loss or damage to supplies or equipment
should be reported to the coach immediately. Failure to return team issued
materials in a timely fashion at season’s end can result in the student being
held financially responsible for full replacement cost.
Selection Classification:
The NYS Athletic Association
reserves the modified level of play for students grades 7 & 8 and the high
school level for students grades 9 through 12. The Athletic Association also
provides for students to play up or down a level based upon a program of screening.
This requires a written recommendation from a district employed coach who has
coached that student in the sport and can certify that he/she is not
appropriate for their peer-group level of play, a maturation physical conducted
by the district’s medical officer to determine the student’s biological (as
opposed to chronological age), parent permission, and a series of physical
screening tests mandated per sport by the NYS Athletic Association. The school
district limits this process to 8th grade students and makes the
next level of play available to them.
Jewelry:
The NYSPHSAA does not allow
students to participate while wearing jewelry of any sort. In keeping with the
soundness of this policy as a safety/risk management issue coaches are expected
to maintain the same policy in try-out and practice situations.
Middle school athletics are
referred to as “modified athletics” by the NYS Athletic Association. This is
due to alterations in the usual rules of play designed to enhance the
probability of student success and participatory opportunities. For instance:
in sports usually divided into 4 quarters of play a 5th period of
play is added (if both teams have sufficient rosters) and each team fields two rosters
(an “A” and “B” roster) which alternate play by quarters.
This and other modifications
make it possible for coaches at the modified to maintain larger rosters than at
the high school. Due to a variety of factors the need to reduce rosters to a
manageable size does exist in many modified athletic programs. Middle school
students are always encouraged to consider second and third choices in the case
that a particular program is unable to accommodate them.
The modified level also emphasizes instruction
and experience for the greatest number of athletes. The A/B roster (where
applicable) accommodates the desire to play the greatest number of students
possible. Coaches are expected seek opportunities within competition to the
greatest extent possible with the goal of all players playing some in each
game. Some of the factors that may limit opportunities for an individual are:
practice attendance, level of preparedness demonstrated in practices, and
opportunity for safe/appropriate competitive match-ups within a competition.
This level of competition
should be considered a bridge between modified and varsity athletics.
Competitions are governed by the rules adopted by the National Federation of
High Schools and the NYS Athletic Association. Opportunities for participation
are expanded by a larger number of scrimmages, games and tournaments than at
the modified level and rosters that are typically larger than a varsity team’s
(but smaller than modified). Depending on the program a roster reduction may be
necessary after a period of competitive tryouts. Rosters are typically 9th
and 10th graders, though in some cases upper-class students are
given the opportunity to be members of a JV roster.
At this level coaches strive
to balance the desire to play as many students as is reasonable versus the
necessary development of a more competitive aspect within the team and against
competition. It should not be expected that all players play in all games,
though it should be a goal that all players should receive some opportunity
during the season. Some of the factors that may limit opportunities for an
individual are: practice attendance, level of preparedness demonstrated in
practices, existence of safe/appropriate competitive match-ups within a
competition, the team’s competitiveness versus its opponents.
This represents the ultimate
level of competition in the interscholastic athletic program. Opportunities for
participation are expanded by a larger number of allowed scrimmages, games and
tournaments than at the JV or modified level, but this does not imply a
guarantee of playing time to any roster member. Depending on the program a
roster reduction may be required after a period of competitive tryouts. Rosters
may be comprised of students 9th through 12th grade.
At this level the main goal
is to achieve the most competitive team possible. The opportunity to find
playing time for all players at some point in the season remains an ideal, but
definitely secondary, goal to competitiveness. Some of the factors that may
limit opportunities for an individual are: practice attendance, level of
preparedness demonstrated in practices, existence of safe/appropriate
competitive match-ups within a competition, the team’s competitiveness versus
its opponents.