HAMLET — Not long after the North Carolina High School Athletic Association announced it would be lifting its nearly three-month long dead period, Richmond County Schools said it was working on the next steps at the local level.
Dr. Jeff Maples, RCS’ superintendent, said the district and the Richmond County Board of Education will be meeting soon to review and solidify a plan of action to allow summer workouts to begin.
Early Monday, the NCHSAA released a statement that it will be lifting its dead period on June 15, but is leaving the final decision in the hands of local school officials. Local Education Agencies (LEAs) are tasked with allowing or not allowing athletics to resume based on how they see fit.
“We are meeting with school administrators and Richmond County Health Department Director Dr. Tommy Jarrell to discuss and assess the current status of COVID-19 in our community,” Maples said in an email to ROSports.
“We will also be reviewing all the safety procedures and guidelines set forth by the DHHS, CDC and Governor Roy Cooper’s office to make sure we work through all the details,” he continued.
“While we are excited about the NCHSAA granting permission to start practice June 15, our priority will always be the safety and well-being of our student athletes, coaches and community.”
In a document released by the NCHSAA on Monday, the return to statewide athletics will follow a phased approach, much like Gov. Cooper’s phases of reopening local businesses and social events.
Some primary points that RCS and the Richmond Senior High School athletics department will have to abide by will be facility cleaning, entrance and exit strategies, gathering limitations, pre-workout monitoring, face coverings and hygiene practices, food cleanliness, team travel and dealing with coaches and players who have or who had contact with COVID-19.
Locker rooms and weight rooms will remain closed during phase one of the NCHSAA’s reopening, and the next two sets of phases will be released in the coming weeks depending on the rate of success seen by phase one.
This is a developing story and the Richmond Observer will update information as it becomes available.
