Should MLEC Have Sports?
For many students at MLEC, sports are a big part of their lives, even though our school doesn’t offer many sports-related extracurriculars. Because Miami Lakes Educational Center has seen students who focus more on their studies and some others who balance sports with academics, the question of whether the school should have its own sports team or not has come up many times.
Currently, the sports that are found at MLEC consist of sports jams, three dance teams, and the fitness club. There are usually three sports jams every school year, in which students try out and make teams, often having one team represent each class. There is a Soccer Jam, Basketball Jam, and Volleyball Jam hosted every school year at the gym.
Many students view the sports as an opportunity to show off their skills that they often practice outside of school, as well as to enjoy the experience with their friends of competing with different grade levels while still representing their school.
When looking at dance teams, which are also considered a form of sport, students who participate also take these as a chance to represent their school and show off their talent during events such as Pep Rally, strengthening school spirit and sparking new bonds between students at MLEC.
However, there are many obstacles to adding sports at MLEC that many students are not aware of. While sports teams may be beneficial, it would require lots of input and dedication from students.
“When the school was created in 2000, that was part of the clause or policy that we couldn’t have any competitive sports. In order to change that, I think that we would have to go through proper channels from the district,” says David Galarce, MLEC’s Magnet Lead.
The clause that was put in place stops the school from being able to add sports teams at MLEC as easily as other schools do, contributing to the reasons why MLEC has not yet added competitive sports teams. If the school were to add a team, the idea would likely have to go through a long process of getting past the clause to be able to legally have one.
Due to the fact that adding a sports team would be a rigorous process, our school would have to see a lot of determination from students to actually go through with pushing for a sports team.
“Outside of what we can control, I would have to say that it’s commitment; we need to have serious commitment from the students because of a certain dedication that goes into those sports and programs,” added Mr. Galarce when asked about what the school would have to see from students to feel secure that the sports teams would actually have success if they are added.
In other words, students would have to show that they would truly push for a team and be dedicated to maintaining interest even after the team is formed; working hard towards adding a team at MLEC would be pointless if students do not join and work hard to do good in the team.
Mr. Galarce also explained that there would be several challenges for managing competitive teams that would require both staff and students to be innovative and creative in order for everything regarding teams to work out. Things such as space, equipment, team coaches, and more are all things that students should keep in mind when asking for more sports at MLEC.
One example of students pushing for more sports at MLEC is Orianna Susana, a 9th grader, who would like for there to be a volleyball team and has been looking at what steps to take in order to make it happen.
“I would like to start my own club and go from there to see how many students commit to it and put effort into the sport or even other sports, so first I would need to talk to Mr. Galarce about it or for him to allow me to start the club, and I could then find a sponsor to help me set up practices and other things; I would also work on having students sign a petition to show our sponsor and Mr. Galarce how many people are willing to be part of the club or team,” said freshman Orianna Susana.
“I believe sports have let me kind of distract myself from personal issues. I strongly believe it could do the same for other students that have personal struggles that school or things like that can’t help them get over,” added Susana.
She also explained how she feels about the fact that there are many opportunities being missed by not having sports teams, claiming that there could be more school spirit and fun events that come with many people’s high school experiences that most Jaguars don’t get to call their own.
This shows that there are, in fact, many people pushing to see more sports at the school and that are willing to do what they have to do to see it happen, as well as many who view not having sports as a factor that affects how many memories all students make in their high school years.
However, there are also students who believe it would be best if our school stays one that focuses on academics, as it always has and has done well doing so.
“Adding sports might be at the expense of other activities that make the school stronger,” said freshman Matthew Rubier.
Many say that they came to Miami Lakes Educational Center because of how it stands out from other schools academically, as the fact that there are no sports helps students with one less distraction from getting good grades and focusing on their studies.
While there are students who do want sports, some who wouldn’t encourage it, and many challenges that would come with actually adding teams, adding sports to MLEC can bring many changes, with students having more chances to represent the school, develop leadership and teamwork skills, and find new friendships, but also having new struggles like an increased need for time management from staff and students.
When putting all these factors together, it becomes more complicated to see whether our school would be better off without sports or if students should start looking into how to push for new ones, as the school would have to measure the well and bad they would do. Because the decision is a difficult one, it will likely depend on what is best for the school and its students, staff, and teacher.
