MHSAA Gives Guidance on Face Coverings
September 10, 2020
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
To provide further guidance and clarification after the announcement of Executive Order 180 regarding COVID-19 precautions and athletics by Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer on Wednesday, the Michigan High School Athletic Association today provided member schools with guidance on the wearing of facial coverings for interscholastic sports.
Following is an excerpt from today’s communication sent to member schools on facial coverings:
Here is a summary of current requirements as they relate to fall sports and face coverings in light of the Governor’s most recent Executive Order (EO 2020-180). It is the MHSAA’s expectation that all members comply with Executive Order 180, which was issued on September 9, 2020, and governs social distancing and facial coverings requirements for organized sports.
As of September 10:
- Face coverings may be worn but student-athletes are not required to do so while in active participation in cross country, golf and tennis. Active participation only applies when an athlete is “in” the game/match/meet/race/competition or is actively involved in any warm-up or cool-down activity. In swimming & diving, there is no requirement of face coverings while preparing to enter the water (and obviously while in the water) but the covering shall be worn at all other times when on-deck or in the facility.
- Face coverings are required in football, soccer and volleyball. This includes all times during active participation and all times during non-active participation when 6 feet of physical distance cannot be maintained.
- There are no provisions in EO 180 for medical intolerance reasons or medical waivers. This is not an MHSAA regulation, and thus the MHSAA has no legal authority to waive or modify this Executive Order from the Governor’s office.
- In both indoor and outdoor practice and training sessions in all regions of the state, including Regions 6 and 8, this same sport-specific guidance applies.
- Consistent with current Executive Orders, face coverings shall be worn by coaches, medical staff, game event staff, media members and spectators. Note that broadcasters and PA announcers are an exception to this requirement when that person is actively broadcasting or announcing. This allows broadcasters and announcers to remove the face covering while performing those speaking duties but should wear the face covering at all other times.
- Officials may wear face coverings on the field of play if he/she desires. Officials shall wear face coverings upon arrival at a facility, before the contest, during intermissions away from the field/court/area of play and following the contest until departure. Remember that officials have no role in enforcing face covering requirements as this is a responsibility of school administrators.
- Executive Order 180 does not define ‘facial coverings’ for purposes of organized sports. Traditional cloth masks, gaiters, affixed helmet plastic shields (100% clear – no tint) and cloth/fabric helmet attachments located inside the face mask (all of which must cover the nose and mouth) are not prohibited.
The MHSAA will attempt to assist schools in understanding these requirements but know the MHSAA has no authority to waive, ignore or modify Executive Orders for any reason.
The MHSAA is a private, not-for-profit corporation of voluntary membership by more than 1,500 public and private senior high schools and junior high/middle schools which exists to develop common rules for athletic eligibility and competition. No government funds or tax dollars support the MHSAA, which was the first such association nationally to not accept membership dues or tournament entry fees from schools. Member schools which enforce these rules are permitted to participate in MHSAA tournaments, which attract more than 1.4 million spectators each year.
Rep Council Approves Phased-In Fall
July 29, 2020
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
The Representative Council of the Michigan High School Athletic Association today approved the next steps in returning sports for member schools, adopting a plan to phase in competition for Fall sports in hopes of continuing to deter the spread of COVID-19.
The Council affirmed that lower-risk sports – cross country, Lower Peninsula girls golf, Lower Peninsula boys tennis and Upper Peninsula girls tennis, and Lower Peninsula girls swimming & diving – may begin practice on Aug. 12 and begin competition on their traditional start dates of Aug. 19 and 21.
However, moderate and high-risk sports – football, girls volleyball and boys soccer – may begin practice but not competition. Decisions about competition timelines for these three sports will be made by Aug. 20.
Practice for boys soccer and girls volleyball may begin on Aug. 12. Football will delay the start of practice with full player pads and equipment until Monday, Aug. 17. The week of Aug. 10 may include football practice sessions consisting of conditioning, physical training and skill work with no other player equipment except helmets. This week of acclimatization is similar to allowed summer football activities that have been ongoing for schools since June.
The Council – the MHSAA’s 19-member legislative body – also voted to cancel scrimmages in all Fall sports for this school year and approved limitations on numbers of teams that may compete together at regular-season tournaments, invitationals and other multi-team events. The Council believed eliminating scrimmages emphasized the importance of keeping teams from mixing before the first date of competition, and the regular-season limitations may lessen opportunities for viral spread while still allowing meets to be conducted.
As this remains a fluid situation, the MHSAA would release updated timelines for competition for football, girls volleyball and boys soccer by Aug. 20 dependent on how the spread of the virus is trending statewide. Plans remain reliant on sustained metrics measuring virus spread and/or progression by schools and regions across the state according to Governor Gretchen Whitmer’s MI Safe Start Plan. Currently two regions are in Phase 5, which allow for limited indoor activity, while the rest are in Phase 4 and unable to host indoor training, practice or competition.
The start of volleyball and swimming & diving practices are in part contingent on the reopening of indoor facilities. Those sports may begin their practices outdoors if not allowed to be indoors by Aug. 12.
“The Council, reflecting on the positive impact on their athletes this summer from taking part in offseason training, feels it’s of utmost importance to continue athletic activity moving forward,” MHSAA Executive Director Mark Uyl said. “If we take a month off, our students will find opportunities to compete through non-school entities that may not be as focused on safety. Our athletic directors and coaches can provide the safest-possible environment to return to sports, and this phased-in approach to competition will help schools continue building on progress already made.
“The Council chose to make these adjustments to help ensure our athletes have a safe regular season this fall. As we continue to solidify the regular season, we can then turn our attention to building a safe postseason for our athletes.”
The MHSAA also has posted sport-by-sport guidance documents outlining increased precautions designed to limit the viral spread, plus a four-page overview with precautions that apply generally for all sports and include coverage of the following topics:
- Protocol for reporting COVID-19 infections.
- Guidance on face coverings. Athletes participating on the field/court are not required to wear face coverings, but are allowed to do so. However, bench personnel must wear face coverings at all times.
- Transportation, use of locker rooms and facility cleaning.
Specific sport guidelines and the overview are available on the respective sport pages of the MHSAA Website. Recommendations on spectator attendance will follow before the start of competition; spectators will be limited in accordance with Governor Whitmer’s executive orders on large gatherings.
The Council on July 17 approved a return-to-activity plan for the 2020-21 school year retaining the traditional calendar of Fall, Winter and Spring sports, but allowing for the possibility that Fall sports forced to halt activity during the next four months may conclude later in the school year.
“The easy way out would be to postpone all activity to next spring, and we are not taking the easy way out. But we will make wise decisions based on medical guidance,” Uyl said. “We will make these difficult decisions quickly and appropriately. If we don’t play this fall, it won’t be because we didn’t make every effort to do so.”
The Representative Council is the legislative body of the MHSAA. All but five members are elected by member schools. Four members are appointed by the Council to facilitate representation of females and minorities, and the 19th position is occupied by the Superintendent of Public Instruction or designee.
The MHSAA is a private, not-for-profit corporation of voluntary membership by more than 1,500 public and private senior high schools and junior high/middle schools which exists to develop common rules for athletic eligibility and competition. No government funds or tax dollars support the MHSAA, which was the first such association nationally to not accept membership dues or tournament entry fees from schools. Member schools which enforce these rules are permitted to participate in MHSAA tournaments, which attract more than 1.4 million spectators each year.