Anonymous
Post 02/25/2025 17:33     Subject: Good luck to the APS 8th graders trying out for the JV teams this week.

Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:No one wants your 8th grader on the team. No one wants your kid/your family affiliated with the team. It wrecks the high school. It wreaks the hs community. High school sports should be for high school students only.

Btw, winning is not most important. Your kid's athletic development is not most important. You are the worst thing that could happen to our school.


So much for inclusion . . .


Someone from a completely different school taking your spot is not inclusion.


Well the kid will be at your school next year. Sorry your kid didn't make the cut.
Anonymous
Post 02/25/2025 17:32     Subject: Good luck to the APS 8th graders trying out for the JV teams this week.

Anonymous wrote:No one wants your 8th grader on the team. No one wants your kid/your family affiliated with the team. It wrecks the high school. It wreaks the hs community. High school sports should be for high school students only.

Btw, winning is not most important. Your kid's athletic development is not most important. You are the worst thing that could happen to our school.


Cry about it.
Anonymous
Post 02/25/2025 17:32     Subject: Good luck to the APS 8th graders trying out for the JV teams this week.

Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:I think it’s great to have more opportunities for kids to play sports, especially ones that are not easily accessible. Crew, field hockey, etc.

We should be adding sports, not taking them away.


You aren’t getting it. Having eighth graders take spots from current high school players is actually reducing the number of high school student students playing sports.


They should add a freshman/8th grade team for all sports.
Anonymous
Post 02/25/2025 16:36     Subject: Good luck to the APS 8th graders trying out for the JV teams this week.

Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:No one wants your 8th grader on the team. No one wants your kid/your family affiliated with the team. It wrecks the high school. It wreaks the hs community. High school sports should be for high school students only.

Btw, winning is not most important. Your kid's athletic development is not most important. You are the worst thing that could happen to our school.


So much for inclusion . . .


If the kid makes the team, the coach wants him so…there.
If your kid is good enough this won’t be an issue.
Anonymous
Post 02/25/2025 16:30     Subject: Good luck to the APS 8th graders trying out for the JV teams this week.

Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:No one wants your 8th grader on the team. No one wants your kid/your family affiliated with the team. It wrecks the high school. It wreaks the hs community. High school sports should be for high school students only.

Btw, winning is not most important. Your kid's athletic development is not most important. You are the worst thing that could happen to our school.


So much for inclusion . . .


Someone from a completely different school taking your spot is not inclusion.
Anonymous
Post 02/25/2025 15:57     Subject: Good luck to the APS 8th graders trying out for the JV teams this week.

Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:So strange that this is allowed. High school extracurriculars should be for high school students.


+1

It was originally allowed because rural high schools did not have enough kids to field an entire team. Its mean to make sure high school kids can have a team, not for middle school kids to take a HS kids spot. The rule is being abused.


+1. It's also not fair to schools in the same league (Fairfax) who do not have this rule. Having the experience of an entire HS season before 9th grade is a huge leg up on other teams.
is Fairfax not allowed to for some reason?


Choose not to.

Quite probably has something to do with middle school getting out so much earlier and the county being so much bigger with bus constraints already. And split feeder middle schools. And all the rest of the complexity. Fairfax can't figure out much simpler things than this.



APS middle schools get out earlier than HS too. 8th graders who try out are responsible for their own transportation. They are not bussed to the HS.

Fairfax chooses not to allow middle schoolers to try out. That's their choice. I don't think having 8th graders on a team gives APS an advantage. There's also a disadvantage because 9th graders are competing against a larger pool for a roster spot.


My kid is trying out for Yorktown baseball this week. Tryouts last night were in South Arlington, and the school did not provide buses.


So much for equity-
Anonymous
Post 02/25/2025 15:56     Subject: Good luck to the APS 8th graders trying out for the JV teams this week.

Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:So strange that this is allowed. High school extracurriculars should be for high school students.


+1

It was originally allowed because rural high schools did not have enough kids to field an entire team. Its mean to make sure high school kids can have a team, not for middle school kids to take a HS kids spot. The rule is being abused.


+1. It's also not fair to schools in the same league (Fairfax) who do not have this rule. Having the experience of an entire HS season before 9th grade is a huge leg up on other teams.
is Fairfax not allowed to for some reason?


Choose not to.

Quite probably has something to do with middle school getting out so much earlier and the county being so much bigger with bus constraints already. And split feeder middle schools. And all the rest of the complexity. Fairfax can't figure out much simpler things than this.


So much for equity-

APS middle schools get out earlier than HS too. 8th graders who try out are responsible for their own transportation. They are not bussed to the HS.

Fairfax chooses not to allow middle schoolers to try out. That's their choice. I don't think having 8th graders on a team gives APS an advantage. There's also a disadvantage because 9th graders are competing against a larger pool for a roster spot.


My kid is trying out for Yorktown baseball this week. Tryouts last night were in South Arlington, and the school did not provide buses.
Anonymous
Post 02/25/2025 15:49     Subject: Good luck to the APS 8th graders trying out for the JV teams this week.

Anonymous wrote:No one wants your 8th grader on the team. No one wants your kid/your family affiliated with the team. It wrecks the high school. It wreaks the hs community. High school sports should be for high school students only.

Btw, winning is not most important. Your kid's athletic development is not most important. You are the worst thing that could happen to our school.


So much for inclusion . . .
Anonymous
Post 02/25/2025 15:32     Subject: Good luck to the APS 8th graders trying out for the JV teams this week.

No one wants your 8th grader on the team. No one wants your kid/your family affiliated with the team. It wrecks the high school. It wreaks the hs community. High school sports should be for high school students only.

Btw, winning is not most important. Your kid's athletic development is not most important. You are the worst thing that could happen to our school.
Anonymous
Post 02/25/2025 14:42     Subject: Good luck to the APS 8th graders trying out for the JV teams this week.

Meridian in FCCPS does this because they don't have enough kids - seriously half or less than half of all other high schools in this area (849). Plus, the middle school and high school are connected so it's easy enough.

My freshman is objectively one of the fastest kids in school for all ages so he's made varsity in 2 of 3 sports and trying out for the 3rd. We're not politically connected so this is just talent.
Anonymous
Post 02/25/2025 14:27     Subject: Good luck to the APS 8th graders trying out for the JV teams this week.

Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:In this area there is absolutely no reason to have 8th graders on JV. Period. If you are in 8th grade and your middle school doesn’t have a team in your sport of choice, join a travel or Rec team. Try out for the HS team in HS. If the JV isn’t very good because the pool of 9th and 10th graders is not strong, so be it.


So many of the really good 8th graders in my DD’s sport went to private school for 9th, so the whole program loses in the end.


+1

Lots of boys trying out for YHS and WHS baseball know they do not intend to go to those schools next year.
Anonymous
Post 02/25/2025 14:24     Subject: Good luck to the APS 8th graders trying out for the JV teams this week.

Anonymous wrote:If your MS doesn’t have sports, find out why and push for them to add them. MS athletes should play MS sports, not HS.


Sorry your kid sucks at sports
Anonymous
Post 02/25/2025 14:15     Subject: Good luck to the APS 8th graders trying out for the JV teams this week.

Anonymous wrote:In this area there is absolutely no reason to have 8th graders on JV. Period. If you are in 8th grade and your middle school doesn’t have a team in your sport of choice, join a travel or Rec team. Try out for the HS team in HS. If the JV isn’t very good because the pool of 9th and 10th graders is not strong, so be it.


So many of the really good 8th graders in my DD’s sport went to private school for 9th, so the whole program loses in the end.
Anonymous
Post 02/25/2025 14:02     Subject: Good luck to the APS 8th graders trying out for the JV teams this week.

If your MS doesn’t have sports, find out why and push for them to add them. MS athletes should play MS sports, not HS.
Anonymous
Post 02/25/2025 13:56     Subject: Good luck to the APS 8th graders trying out for the JV teams this week.

Anonymous wrote:I think it’s great to have more opportunities for kids to play sports, especially ones that are not easily accessible. Crew, field hockey, etc.

We should be adding sports, not taking them away.


You aren’t getting it. Having eighth graders take spots from current high school players is actually reducing the number of high school student students playing sports.