The first week of February and nearly a year since high school sports were cut-short due to the COVID-19 pandemic, school districts within Alaska are continuing to deal with means to provide extra-curricular activities safely for high school programs.
A quick snapshot of covid issues and mitigation measures illustrates the ongoing and ever-changing situation.
Anchorage School District
The ASD has approved the start of the high school basketball regular season, as of Feb.1, allowing indoor basketball games with all players and personnel required to wear masks at all times. No spectators are allowed in the facilities.
The City of Anchorage, under Emergency Order 18, will require COVID-19 tests for all participants prior to indoor competitions for wrestling and ice-based sports like hockey. Outdoor hockey will require masks and mitigation measures. ASD has postponed the co-ed ice hockey season until mid-March. Girls hockey is continuing on outdoor ice at Bonnie Cusack Outdoor rinks with the girls championship game scheduled for Saturday.
Mat-Su School District
The Mat-Su School District announced on Wednesday the suspension of all activities and athletics until at least Sunday, February 7th.
The Mat-Su School District has been allowing both basketball and hockey competitions without masks for players.
According to Mat-Su Superintendent Dr. Randy Trani, activities would be put on pause until at least Sunday with 94 positive cases of COVID-19 associated with MSBSD over the last two weeks. Trani also stated according to The Frontiersman newspaper that, “We’re (the district) accelerating dramatically or another way to put it since Sunday of 101 cases that have been reported in the Borough, 61 of them we know have occurred here (schools). It’s hundreds and hundreds of potential close contacts that they have to investigate.” Trani also stated, “About 30 of the positive cases in the last week have been activities and they’re activities with no masks, so it’s not just athletics.”
Kodiak School District
No athletics allow outside of the Kodiak School District.
Fairbanks North Star Borough
The Fairbanks North Star Borough Board of Education voted 5-2 on Tuesday to allow some public schools gymnasiums to be used for youth sports.
Fairbanks area schools opened basketball competition on Feb.1st with no masks required on the court while playing; masks are required for everyone in facility.
Fairbanks schools hockey mask policy: Masks are required by all participants while not actively playing in a game; masks are required for everyone in facility.
This report is not designed to be all-inclusive; merely a snapshot of how different school districts are handling COVID-19 mitigation.
