Pay to play scheme detrimental to students

To The Eagle:

High school students having to pay to play, which in some cases pay to participate, is not fair to all students. Students who want to play a sport have to come up with $60. If you want to play three sports that year, you would have to pay $180 and are still not always guaranteed the chance to actually play. How is it fair to make students that will be unable to play still pay the same amount as the students who get to? Not only is just being able to participate an issue, but what about the students that are unable to pay that much money? Some can play one sport, if that, but they are not given the chance to play all of the sports they want to only because they are unable to pay to play every sport.

Forcing students that want to play sports to have to pay such a large amount of money is causing more and more students to choose not to participate. Students should be able to do as many activities that they can throughout high school. They should not be limited on chances to participate in not only sports and to learn from coaches but the chance to be around their friends outside of school. Having students pay to be able to participate is not only bad for the teams at school, it keeps students from learning responsibility and determination, all because they do not have the money to play.

Pay to play should be taken away and sports should be allowed to be participated by anyone who wants to. The best way would be to have the school board reconsider the impact that pay to play has on Wahkiakum students. If the board could vote to take away pay to play then more students would be able to participate.

If the whole town can attend the school board meetings and stick up for this topic then they can make a difference. Adults that are in town should understand how important sports are to students in high school, and they should not continue to keep students from being able to participate only because they do not have enough. They should support taking the pay to play rule away so that every student has an equal chance in participating in sports all throughout their four years in high school.

Wyatt Parker

Cathlamet