Students took their fight to the streets of Collingwood on Thursday against a Simcoe County school board decision preventing them from competing in provincial championships this year.
On Thursday morning, students from Collingwood Collegiate Institute gathered to protest the Simcoe County District School Board’s decision that students from its schools would not be able to participate in the Ontario Federation of School Athletic Associations (OFSAA) championships and festivals this fall season.
About 20 students lined Hurontario Street in front of the school to express their opposition.
Avery O’Neill was one of the protest organizers. The Grade 11 student had signed petitions on the issue but was hoping to raise more awareness through the protest.
“I hoped if we showed (the school board) that a lot of people really care about this and this was a decision that is affecting all of us... we are asking them to reconsider their decision,” said O’Neill.
The Simcoe County District School Board communicated their decision to students and their families on Sept. 30.
“Given that we are in a pandemic, the decision was made to conclude the season at the GBSSA (Georgian Bay Secondary School Association) level in order to mitigate risk,” said Sarah Kekewich, the board's communications manager.
The public board's decision came days after the Simcoe Muskoka Catholic District School Board’s educational leadership council made the same call, citing COVID and its fourth wave.
Kekewich said the public board's decision was made "to ensure the continued well-being of our student-athletes, staff and coaches.
“By continuing competition to the GBSSA championships level, our teams will have the opportunity to compete against schools from other areas of Simcoe County and Muskoka, while remaining within the confines of the Simcoe Muskoka District Health Unit," she said.
To read our story on the board’s decision, click here.
O’Neill said the issue for students is compounded because some students who participate in the regional Georgian Bay championships (GBs) are not in schools within the Simcoe County purview, such as public schools in Muskoka.
This means some students participating in the GBs can go to OFSSA, and some can’t.
Shanon Colbourne is part of the cross-country running team at CCI.
“It seems silly that other school boards are competing but ours can’t but it’s the same conditions,” said the Grade 12 student. “We’ve done meets safely so far this year so it doesn’t seem logical to not let us do OFSAA also.”
Hailey Abbott participates in a variety of sports at CCI, including cross-country running, swimming, nordic skiing and track and field.
“I think it’s very important for our mental health, and we’ve worked so hard to get to this place to compete. We’ve shown we can do it safely through the protocols we follow at all of our regional competitions,” said Abbott. “Those same protocols are in place at OFSAA.”
Protester John Parnell is a Grade 12 student, and participates in cross-country running at the school.
“I think it’s unfair. We should be part of OFSAA,” said Parnell.
