And David Took Up A Rock...
Oh man, oh man, we almost did it. Boys basketball against the $10,000/ year and up private Christian school (whyaretheyinourleague?whyaretheyinourleague?whyaretheyinourleague?) last night, and the 8th graders -- who wore shirt and tie to school -- came out possessed. Up 5 after the first quarter, tied at half, they ran out of steam and lost by 8. We just couldn't compete with the depth those guys had. Our 1-5 may have been better than their 1-5, but their 6-10 could just destroy ours. At halftime I was so excited I went outside and ran laps in the parking lot and after the game I wanted to go sit in the dark and not talk. This was the opportunity of a generation. Not to stereotype or generalize, but you don't see a lot of 6'1" and 6'3" Mexican and Vietnamese 8th graders, and we've got two. Plus a kid who could play in college if he learned to shoot. Aw man, we almost did it.
After the game, during the handshake thing, their players try to hand out Powerade to our guys. Maybe if the budget for their basketball team -- road and home jerseys, warm-ups, three coaches -- didn't exceed our entire athletic budget I wouldn't care, but the gesture seemed extremely patronizing. Doesn't matter that it was well-intentioned (probably). Take your noblese oblige somewhere else.
After the game, during the handshake thing, their players try to hand out Powerade to our guys. Maybe if the budget for their basketball team -- road and home jerseys, warm-ups, three coaches -- didn't exceed our entire athletic budget I wouldn't care, but the gesture seemed extremely patronizing. Doesn't matter that it was well-intentioned (probably). Take your noblese oblige somewhere else.
posted by Kilian Betlach at 7:04 AM
3 Comments:
I'm a parent in SFUSD, where our academic high school, Lowell, admits based on academic achievement. When I learned that one friend's K-8 private school routinely cheats to get its kids admitted to Lowell, I realized what a truly different planet those schools are on. I'm not a sports person, but I'm sorry to read about the disappointment!
Those kids -- well, their parents -- are BUYING their jerseys and warm-ups and their sports fee pays the coaches. That's in addition to the tuition money.
That's how it happens at the private Christian school I teach at, anyway.
And you're also right about their Powerade being well-intentioned if patronizing. The team doesn't know it's patronizing. They're just trying to be good hosts. All our teams do something like that for all our visiting opponents. Often the girls will bake cookies and bring them to hand out.
Sorry your guys lost. Good game, though, it sounds like.
You're right, Jeri. If I didn't so clearly see the differences in SES between our schools, the Powerade thing would not have mattered. Same with the jerseys. I'm the athletic director, and every year I struggle with the question of cutting sports. This year I cut softball and probably boys volleyball, because I'm trying to bring back track and field. Like everything else, the unlevel playing field eats at ya.
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