Athletics are finally back for middle schools! We will begin as soon as we track in, on January 25th for girl's basketball, boy's basketball, and cheerleading. This year, athletics will look a little different as compared to the past due to Covid-19 and safety guidelines as outlined by Wake County. There will be no interscholastic athletic competition against opposing middle schools this year. Instead, student athletes will have the opportunity to participate in skill development, conditioning, and for some sports, intramural options will be held. Health and safety will be our top priority as we conduct these athletic skill sessions.

WHEN WILL ATHLETICS START?

• Season 1- January 25-February 19.

  • Boys’ Basketball, Girls’ Basketball and Cheerleading

• Season 2- February 22-March 26

  • Volleyball, Girls’ Soccer, Football and Cheerleading

• Season 3- April 7-May 14

  • Softball, Boys’ Track and Field, Girls’ Track and Field, Boys’ Soccer

*There will be no skill sessions on asynchronous learning days.

Skill sessions will begin right after school and end at the latest 4:30pm. Virtual academy students will need to arrive to the front of the school between 3:00 and 3:15pm and must wait in their cars until they pass their health screening. Pick up will take place in bus loop. PLEASE BE ON TIME FOR PICKUP.

At this time, we are not sure if an after-school activity bus will be available to take students home after practice. We will announce that information when it becomes available.

WHO CAN ATTEND?

• Limited to students who are in attendance for face-to-face learning on the day of the activity and assigned students from the Virtual Academy, as determined by the school.

• Number of participants is to be determined by school staff based on available space to keep students appropriately distanced. 

• Academic eligibility verification is not required.

• Open to all 7th and 8th grade students. After assessing interest and determining available space, schools have the discretion to include interested 6th grade students if space is available. 

• Plan B student athletes (non-virtual academy students) will have the opportunity to attend these sessions only while they are in school for in person instruction. These Plan B students must also be present in school during their in-person week in order to attend. A Plan B student will not be admitted inside to attend the skill session if they stayed home during instruction. Locker rooms will not be available, so Plan B students should come to school dressed for their after-school activity and have a water bottle with their name on it. 

  Virtual academy student athletes who are interested will be assigned a week to come and will have to go through a health screening process prior to being allowed in the building and/or athletic fields. Health screenings will take place at the front entrance of the school between 3:00-3:15pm. Students must wait in their cars at the front of the school until they pass their health screening. Please turn off your heat while waiting in your cars so we can obtain an accurate temperature. Virtual academy students should come dressed for activity, have a mask, and have a water bottle with their name on it. 

HOW CAN YOU ATTEND?

You will need to complete 2 forms to be eligible to attend any skill session. You will need to complete a sport interest form to be assigned a week and you will need to complete the pre-participation athletic paperwork to participate.

Interest Form

To be assigned a week to attend, you must fill out an interest form. Interest forms will be sent out prior to each season starting. Here is the link for the session 1 interest form YOU MUST LOGIN TO YOUR STUDENT WCPSS EMAIL ADDRESS TO FILL OUT:

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1b_Jst5dMtOILRu0K1RiCYBRfx0sFlVUSa1y5YVLm8D8/edit  

Session 2 and 3 will be sent out later. From this form, Mr. Ahn will be working on assigning students for each week to ensure that numbers allow safety for all and everyone has equal opportunity to participate. Mr. Ahn will let you know the dates you are allowed to attend. You can only attend those dates if you are healthy and have turned in your pre-participation athletic paperwork.  

Pre-Participation Athletic Paperwork

All student athletes will need to have a valid physical (doctor exam form) and a current athletic participation packet on file with Mr. Ahn to participate. This paperwork must be completed prior to your first day of practice pre-participation athletic paperwork will be submitted online through our registration portal on our website. All pages can easily be filled out and signed online. The only page that you must scan into the online portal is the physical exam page (doctor page 5).  If you do not have access to a scanner to submit that page, then you may hand a paper copy into Mr. Ahn. The online registration portal to submit your athletic participation packet will be up and running on January 13th (I am learning on the 12th how to set it up). Please go to the Athletics Forms tab on our athletics website to complete this anytime. This pre-participation athletic paperwork will only need to be submitted one time this year, even if you participate in multiple sport seasons. Once Mr. Ahn has received and reviewed your paperwork submission, she will reach out to you letting you know your status. 

Please use the google link below to sign up for session 1 of Lufkin athletics.

YOU MUST LOGIN TO YOUR STUDENT WCPSS EMAIL ADDRESS TO FILL OUT

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1b_Jst5dMtOILRu0K1RiCYBRfx0sFlVUSa1y5YVLm8D8/edit