Ever since the pandemic began, school life has changed tremendously. Newfound school life has been hard to adjust to for students and teachers alike. From the teaching climate to communication, we’ve seen so many adjustments and modifications to our 2020-2021 school year. One of the greatest changes and adjustments have been to athletics at Agnes Irwin, which, if you’re an Upper or Middle School athlete, you’ve felt firsthand. Athletics here at AIS remain an important and necessary extracurricular for so many girls at the school. Imagine doing a sport your entire life until your performance, motivation, and effort become all affected by an unanticipated pandemic. In order to ensure the safety of all the athletes, students, and teachers during the pandemic, new safety procedures had to be implemented that affect everyone.
In Upper School, sports have been a heavily discussed topic. Of all the COVID-19 modifications, the most prominent discussions are about the weekly COVID-19 testing. Roughly one or two times a week, all the high school athletes congregate at a COVID-19 testing station near the SLC. The testing occurs at varying times throughout the day, such as lunchtime or after assembly. The testing is administered via both nose swabbing and saliva tests. All students administer the tests themselves once at the station. Due to the tests specifically affecting the Upper School athletes, I got the most accurate information about testing experiences from the athletes themselves.
After being asked about the testing, Chloe Costello ‘24 said, “I think it’s fine, however, two times a week is a lot, especially when we don’t play any games during the week. It’s a lot, but it works.” Another similar opinion about the tests came from Janna Parker ‘24. She told me, “We should do it in the middle of the week, like Tuesday and Thursday. And then test again at the end of the week. I wish the testing was more spaced out.” Every athlete I spoke with felt that the testing should be more sporadic rather than at set times throughout the week. Another popular opinion about the testing was about the test themselves.
After being asked about her feelings about the testing methods, Ella Springer ‘24 stated that “I usually get there early, so it’s not a long wait. The testing doesn’t affect me, but I like the nose one better because I can eat before taking it, unlike the mouth one.” Leah Greene ‘24, stated another similar opinion that “I think it’s necessary for our health, but the methods are uncomfortable.” This popular opinion arose from the no-eating policy implemented before taking the mouth swab test. Athletes who get tested with a swab test are unable to eat for 30 minutes before their COVID-19 test. This policy can be inconvenient because sometimes the testing can occur during lunch, causing the students to refrain from eating during their waiting time, which can take up the entire period. Ella Zwilling ‘24 said, “I think it’s a good idea because it helps us know people who got COVID-19 from sports before it spreads. We should be testing more sporadically rather than in a certain team order. We also need to have more organized time and a certain allotted time for each lunch,” sharing a similar opinion as the other girls about the testing process and methods.
After talking to some athletes about their experiences with testing, I learned about the importance of keeping COVID-safe in a sports setting! Wearing your masks and going to testing every week will ultimately benefit you and your health. All the girls mentioned the necessity of having the testing, even though it can sometimes be uncomfortable or have some disadvantages. It is all for the benefit of them and their health, and they’d be willing to do it if they could play their beloved sports.
