Wright City sixth grade students will have the option to participate in certain middle school sports, with the potential for more sports to be options in the future.
With the Missouri State High School Activities Association now allowing sixth graders to participate in middle school sports, the Wright City R-2 school board approved a plan to allow sixth graders to participate in cross country in the fall and track and field in the spring. The plan also allows sixth graders to participate in other sports if a sport needs more athletes.
“MSHSAA’s updated what they’ve allowed for students to participate in sports,” Wright City Activities Director David Evans said. “And they’ve expanded it to sixth graders. So as a district, we’re looking at the opportunity to try to get some sixth graders involved in athletics without making it a burden on the school with trying to staff more coaching programs and facilities.”
The middle school cross country program only had eight students on the roster in the fall of 2021. Another coach would not need to be added until the roster reaches the mid-20s, Evans said. The track and field team currently has 45 students on the roster. They have three coaches. A fourth coach may be needed depending on the numbers but there are otherwise no other projected costs with allowing sixth graders to participate in the program.
“My proposal right now would be that we add it right now in those two areas,” Evans said. “And then we’re also looking to add it in all the other sports if it’s needed. “
Evans noted they always make cuts in seventh and eighth grade basketball.He does not anticipate they will need sixth graders to help with numbers on the basketball team. However, they only had three students show up on the first day of softball practice this past year. Sixth graders could have helped the softball program, he said.
Evans confirmed as of last month’s meeting, the plan did not call for hiring any other coaches. They may need to add another coach in track if the roster grows. Middle school coaching stipends run between $2,500 to $2,800.
One of the challenges Wright City faces with having sixth graders participate in sports is the lack of schools that offer sixth grade sports, Evans said. Sixth graders would have to compete against seventh grade teams at a minimum in sports such as basketball because there are not many schools that offer sixth grade programs currently, Evans added.
“At some point, we’ll get to the point where other schools are offering sixth grade basketball,” Evans said. “At that time, we’ll look to add sixth grade basketball. But it doesn’t make any sense to send our sixth graders to play other seventh grade teams that our seventh grade teams aren’t beating very often.”