We are a hockey family. I just attended a game tonight (Tuesday) in Laurel with Howard and Glenelg and that place was rocking. My kids are not in high school, but they will be. Here are some thoughts....

- Getting MCPS funding, etc. is going to be hard, but these club sports like rugby, hockey, etc. should at least get school sponsorship and support. Kids should be able to earn a letter, have a yearbook page, get games announced in the morning, etc. They should get some recognition. Hockey is such an exciting sport and you could easily build school spirit with this sport. I saw it tonight in Laurel.

- MCPS should send some money over to Parks and Rec to fix up Cabin John in order to put in some more stands on the NHL rink or let the HS's play over in the Olympic Rink where the stands are better. Then, the schools should be able to charge money for games and maybe sell or get a cut of the refreshment stand. This money can pay for security, ice time, etc.

- I would really push that youth hockey is taking off. Last year the Montgomery Youth Hockey club (MYHA) had something like 12 house teams and 8 travel teams at the squirt level. That doesn't include a couple more teams of Montgomery kids over at Chevy Chase. Some of these kids will go to private school, but my guess is that most won't (except maybe the Chevy Chase kids

- Long term, I would push for a new sports funding model. I think MCPS and other public systems should just give an activity budget to each school and let the individual schools decide where to spend it. Why should a school field a lousy football team every year if the school won't support it. Move that money to something the school will support, music or arts or hockey. Let parents and gate funds pay for the rest. If a kid wants to play football at a school that won't support it, let that kid play for a neighbor school (The Md Scholastic Hockey League uses this model today. When high schools don't have enough kids for a team than join a multiple school team.

I signed your petition. Good luck.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:On the one hand, if I understand the proposal, my thought is why not. It does not seem like they are asking for anything other than recognition -- i.e. they are not asking for financial support -- and the cost of a letter patch is nothing in exchange for the student athletes agreeing to adhered to the same grade and conduct standards as other school athletes. If the students are not willing to agree to have minimum GPA and conduct standards, then I don't think the school should be involved. On the other hand, what about the kids who play on non-school associated teams? Are we going to give letters to excellent players on travel teams? In the end, I am for it, though I don't see why the OP wants to invite MCPS and the associated bureaucracy into his organization.

Here's the thing. It can't work this way. Either hockey becomes a varsity sport and follows all MCPS rules (not likely to happen given the state of the athletics budget) OR it remains a sport outside of MCPS as it is now. Technically sports organizations that run "club teams" such as hockey, rugby, etc aren't supposed to be supported or recognized by their school. This includes school announcements, use of rooms for meetings, equipment and facilities or yearbook photos. In reality I think many places let some of this slide as there really isn't much harm in a picture in a yearbook or a morning announcement (equipment and facilities are a different matter).

Asking for both ways really isn't going to happen.

Looks like we have an answer for the win.

Anonymous wrote:On the one hand, if I understand the proposal, my thought is why not. It does not seem like they are asking for anything other than recognition -- i.e. they are not asking for financial support -- and the cost of a letter patch is nothing in exchange for the student athletes agreeing to adhered to the same grade and conduct standards as other school athletes. If the students are not willing to agree to have minimum GPA and conduct standards, then I don't think the school should be involved. On the other hand, what about the kids who play on non-school associated teams? Are we going to give letters to excellent players on travel teams? In the end, I am for it, though I don't see why the OP wants to invite MCPS and the associated bureaucracy into his organization.

Here's the thing. It can't work this way. Either hockey becomes a varsity sport and follows all MCPS rules (not likely to happen given the state of the athletics budget) OR it remains a sport outside of MCPS as it is now. Technically sports organizations that run "club teams" such as hockey, rugby, etc aren't supposed to be supported or recognized by their school. This includes school announcements, use of rooms for meetings, equipment and facilities or yearbook photos. In reality I think many places let some of this slide as there really isn't much harm in a picture in a yearbook or a morning announcement (equipment and facilities are a different matter).

Asking for both ways really isn't going to happen.

On the one hand, if I understand the proposal, my thought is why not. It does not seem like they are asking for anything other than recognition -- i.e. they are not asking for financial support -- and the cost of a letter patch is nothing in exchange for the student athletes agreeing to adhered to the same grade and conduct standards as other school athletes. If the students are not willing to agree to have minimum GPA and conduct standards, then I don't think the school should be involved. On the other hand, what about the kids who play on non-school associated teams? Are we going to give letters to excellent players on travel teams? In the end, I am for it, though I don't see why the OP wants to invite MCPS and the associated bureaucracy into his organization.

Anonymous wrote:I like the idea of offering as many sports as possible, but wouldn't this require the building of ice rinks at schools?

no, schools have swim teams and use non-school pools.

Anonymous wrote:I know you all understand better than anyone just how much time, commitment, and money is required to play high school hockey. It is completely unbelievable to me that a dedicated athlete can put so much into a sport and not be recognized for that effort. I think it’s time to change that! I started a petition a while back and if you have not signed it, please go there now and do so. Please tell your friends and family as well. The more people who sign helps us to show how big the sport is to our area. Here is the link:

http://www.change.org/petitions/montgomery-county-public-schools-make-ice-hockey-an-official-varsity-sport

Because of my strong feelings that something should be done, I decided to make this goal of mine my MYP Project. Part of my project, which will also help in my overall goal, is to present my case to the Montgomery School Board. I would like to include your thoughts to the Board in a couple of weeks. Our future high school hockey players deserve a Varsity Letter, like every other athlete in our county!!

Done! Signed & supported! Good luck

I like the idea of offering as many sports as possible, but wouldn't this require the building of ice rinks at schools?