(Editor’s Note: This article was posted on April 1st as an April Fools joke. Since it is still being shared post-April 1st, we want to make sure that everyone knows this was a joke.)

Fair Grove High School is making the decision to end sports in the 2018-2019 school year. The change is coming from students not keeping up in schoolwork. This decision was made by the school board in March by a close vote, ending 4-3. This decision will be announced before the beginning of the 2019-2020 school year.

The school started noticing an overall drop in grades right away at the beginning of each sport season. As fall sports came to an end the grades went back up but instantly came back down as winter and spring sports started with off season. Kids also getting injured in sports causes them to miss class or not be able to participate. This has been observed for many years and is only getting worse each year. The high school principal Chris Stallings said, “I am surprised by the effect of sports has had on student grades.”

He feels student grades and success should come before school sports, which is why this topic was brought to the school board with serious consideration in Mid February.  

In February the school board started to talk about the topic after it was announced. The conclusion made is that sports are taking up to much of the students time and pulling all of their attention for big time periods throughout the year. Having their attention taken for these lengths of the season causes a lack of education given to the kids. Not only are the kids losing out on their education they are also not receiving enough sleep at night. Most high school athletes only get around 6 hours of sleep a night during seasons, instead of the 8-9 hours they need.

A few students each year will lose out on chance of an athletic scholarship. The school board is hoping that more students will focus on school and be able to gain academic scholarships. Along with this they are wanting the schools state testing scores to keep improving over the upcoming years. By not being a top competitor in sports anymore, competing in academics with other schools is the future goal. Students have spoke out against this saying that some of them rely on their athletic abilities to get them into colleges because they can’t keep up academically.

The schools decision to remove sports from the school district was made final in March. The students will receive less injuries and pay better attention during the school year. Superintendent Mike Bell said, “This is not a punishment towards the students but what is best for them because an education is what they are expected to get here each day at Fair Grove.”

In hopes that students will receive a better education this is the route they’ve choose to take. Students can still participate in school clubs and academic activities.