High School Sports Mission Statement

The mission of the Josh Elder High School athletic program is to provide students with an opportunity to succeed at the sport of their choice that is an integral part of their education. We want students to have a safe fun environment where they don't feel judged but work hard to be the very best that they can be. Students will learn life lessons and values from admirable coaches and teachers that can be looked upon as role models. Win or lose students will exhibit honor, sportsmanship, and a winning attitude.

http://www.castrovalleyhigh.org/apps/pages/index.jsp?uREC_ID=90100&type=d
http://www.shoreregional.org/Page/315

Dustin Johnson's Infamous Three Putt

It was a Sunday afternoon at the 2015 US Open and Dustin Johnson is going into the 18th hole at Chambers bay sitting at 4 under. Jordan Spieth was in the group ahead of Johnson and just birdied the 18th to grab the lead at 5 under. DJ split the fairway giving himself a 247 yard approach on the par 5 18th hole. This was only a mere 5 iron for the heavy hitter. With the wind to his back he flushed his 5 iron finding the green. Dustin now had a 12 foot eagle putt to win the US Open. After what felt like an eternity of studying every break that his ball could take DJ stepped up, Swung, and pushed the putt almost 4 feet past the hole. Now for an average golfer 4 footers can be nerve racking especially with golfs most coveted trophy on the line. But they're almost automatic for most. PGA tour players make putts within 5 feet 96% of the time. To force a monday playoff and a chance for the US Open trophy Dustin Johnson burned the left edge and tapped in for par and tied 2nd place in the US Open. Sounds bad doesn't it? Well for most it is but DJ walked off the 18th green with a smile on his face. He kissed his wife who is freaking Paulina Gretzky. Kissed their 1 year old son and embraced the rest of his family. So even though DJ didn't come out on top Sunday his wife's still hotter than you'rs and a $1,000,800 paycheck for second place numbs the pain too.

How Should High School Sports Be Financed??

High school sports remain a controversy in many different areas. But one of the most important arguments is how they're funded. Schools should fund their own programs only if they have the budget to afford it. In Katy Texas situation they used a massive 750 million dollar bond to build one of the biggest high school football stadiums in history seating 12,000 people and costing a record 58  million dollars. Now this is high school funding to the extreme but some schools are approaching the funding situation differently. Teams like the Cinnaminson Hockey team and the Haddon Township crew program are paid for by the athletes costing nearly a 1,000 dollars to just register. That doesn't include equipment. I don't agree with either of these funding plans but here's one I agree with. Cherry Hill West is charging a 100 dollar activity fee for all sports. This is benefiting the school and teams by having plenty of funding for equipment and anything else the sport and athletes would need. The students will be able to come up with 100 dollars and if not i'm sure the school can make an exception.

Benefits and Negatives to High School Sports

Whats interesting about high school sports is that there is as many opposing arguments as there are supporting arguments. The benefits cancel out the negatives and leave it neutrally controversial. So what are the supporting arguments? Sports involve students in activities, build self-esteem, enhance fitness, Generate spirit and unity, promote support, develop and rewards valued skills. Students do need to be involved in school to keep them out of trouble and promote good grades. Also, Self-esteem is an extremely important aspect to a young persons life. Fitness is also a growing problem as many of our country's young people are overweight.

With many pro arguments there comes many negative arguments towards high school sports. It is said that they distract students from academics, create dependence, increase injuries, waste resources, create pressure and distort status system. While these arguments are valid they are still very debatable. What do you think?

http://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2013/10/the-case-against-high-school-sports/309447/

http://www.theatlantic.com/education/archive/2013/10/high-school-sports-arent-killing-academics/280155/

The Impact Sports Have On Students

For as long as anyone can remember Sports have been an important part of every high school in the United States. There's many different sports a student can participate in. So if a student is not interested in football they can play baseball or golf or even track and field. I'm sure a students interest can be sparked somewhere. High school sports have been accredited to teach players lifetime lessons that they remember for the rest of their life. Ask a college student what they had for lunch three days ago and they wont remember but ask them what sport they played in highschool and you'll hear stories of the great memories they had playing the sport they love. There is also a theory that athletes who played varsity sports earn higher salaries later in life. Sports are more than just a game they teach young people lessons that they hold on to for a lifetime.







http://www.nytimes.com/roomfordebate/2014/10/21/taking-sports-out-of-school-2/high-school-athletes-gain-lifetime-benefits