Shea, GBL Athletic Directors Meet to Discuss Winter Sports

Revere High School Director of Athletics Frank Shea is meeting with Greater Boston League ADs today to discuss the evolving situation regarding the winter sports season in relation to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Among the key developments in the GBL this week was Everett High’s decision to delay the start of its winter sports preseason practices from Dec. 15 to a new date. The Everett School Committee had voted 8-0 on Dec. 7 to allow the winter teams to begin practices as early as Dec. 15.

“I think you’re going to see a lot of those decisions being made,” said Shea. “With the case numbers going up, I think officials are going to roll back.”

Revere High was tentatively scheduled to begin its preseason practices on Jan. 4. A decision by Revere school administrators and city officials will be made on that day to determine whether preseason practices will go forward.

In fact, Revere Supt. of Schools Dr. Dianne Kelly weighed in on the subject of winter sports during a combined meeting of the School Committee and City Council Friday. Showing that she is closely monitoring all COVID-19-related matters regarding the schools, Kelly noted accurately that the Lynn public high schools, Classical, English, and Tech, had canceled their entire winter sports seasons. Kelly understands the crucial role that competitive interscholastic sports play in the high school experience for Revere students. The many Revere student-athletes going on to compete in college programs (with some, like former RHS basketball star Valentina Pepic earning scholarships) – not to mention the increased participation in RHS athletics – has reflected very well on Shea and the entire school district.

But with coronavirus cases surging in recent weeks, many area high school athletic programs have had to revise their plans for the winter sports season while remaining hopeful that they can begin practices soon.

Shea Joins Urban School Association

Shea has been meeting on a regular basis with athletic directors from urban high schools, who have formed a new association.

“The MIAA approved the group to be an ad hoc committee so we’ll have a voice for urban schools,” said Shea. “We’ll be represented in many of the state issues which is a big step forward because sometimes we’re dealing with different situations than the suburban athletic directors. So this is a big step in the right direction for the urban schools.”

There are approximately 35 school districts participating in the new urban athletic directors association.