Event restrictions By Jacob Kriewald

From the beginning of the year to now restrictions have been changing constantly, and one of those changes that has been seen is the attendance acceptance for activities for the school. During the football season at the beginning of the year students weren’t allowed to come to games until half way through the season, and even then only seniors were allowed to attend. This was the same thing that they did with volleyball. 

Then when winter sports started the state decided that up to 75 students were allowed to attend whether they were a senior or not with the purchase of a ticket ahead of time and if there were enough slots open, you could pay at the gate.

Now, with spring sports, from my knowledge, there is no limit to how many people that can attend athletic events that are held. Granite some of these events are being held outside, but even then, what is the difference between the virus during the football season versus now? Yes a vaccine has been released but even with that point, most highschoolers were not allowed to get it until late into the season when the CDC approved it for people ages 16 and above. I am not for or against crowds for events but if we are going to do so I feel it should’ve been equal for all athletes, performers and others across the state. 

I am a football player and having limited fans was  an extremely different experience. The East vs. West game this year felt very odd due to the fact that the game normally has up to 1,000 people in attendance. This was irritating because when I saw that basketball games and other sports were having good size crowds, it made me realize that some of my fellow classmates are going to have different experiences of highschool sports. 

I cannot speak on behalf of the arts program but I can imagine that it was not as enjoyable as it has been in the past. 

Athletes and performers go hand in hand, both are in a sense performing in front of a crowd to showcase what all they are capable of and when there is no one there to watch, it’s a little demoralizing. The worst part is seeing certain areas of the school getting more attention than others. Watching a sport have 75 people attend their games then being told only family can come to a play you are staring in is a little heartbreaking and irritating.

The only thing I ask for is if we are in this same predicament next year that the school district and state give equal opportunity to every student who performs and plays, because we all deserve the same treatment. Most students go all throughout elementary school and middle school dreaming about playing at the football stadium on a friday night, or performing in the auditorium for the school and family to watch.