The way in which New York City private schools have dealt with Covid in terms of sports has widely varied. There are, in fact, new rules of engagement. At Fieldston, our parents and opposing teams’ parents are able to come here, watch their kids play, cheer them on, and drive them home afterward. This approach ultimately allows our students and their families to retain a sense of normalcy from before the Pandemic. At many other schools that Fieldston plays—at least for the fall and winter seasons—opposing teams’ parents have been barred from attending their children’s games. At away games, Fieldston athletes are unable to have their parents cheer them on and are under pressure to perform for only opposing teams’ parents.
At home games, Fieldston’s policy is that any fully vaccinated spectators (with proof of vaccination) are allowed to attend. This decision was made in tandem with Fieldston’s Athletic Director, Gus Ornstein, Interim Head of School Kyle Wilkie Glass, and Director of Campus Services Teddy O’Rourke.
When asked about the decision-making process, Mr. Ornstein said, “I really want our parents to be able to watch our kids. I want our students to be able to enjoy it. So much was taken away in the last year, and we’ve lost so much of that feeling. It was so great in the fall being able to have [some normalcy] and to be able to keep that momentum going, as long as we could do it safely. So as long as Kyle and Teddy deemed it to be safe, then let’s keep it going.”
The care and thoughtfulness behind this approach were palpable to all Fieldston athletes. Playing to nearly empty stands is especially difficult for athletes, but Mr. Ornstein, Mr. Wilkie Glass, and Mr. O’Rourke ensured that Fieldston students would not have to endure anything along those lines.
Fieldston’s policy has been wildly different from other schools’ approaches, but our originality and singularity have been praised. For example, Riverdale allowed no Fieldston students at our games against each other, while Fieldston allowed all who followed the protocols to come and watch. At Trinity, only students and vaccinated parents are permitted to watch their games. Hackley only opened their gates to two vaccinated visiting team spectators per athlete when winter playoffs began. In response, parents and students from the entire Ivy Preparatory League have praised Fieldston for being one of the only opposing schools to allow them to watch sporting events.
Mr. Ornstein says of the general response to Fieldston’s policy, “At least that I’m aware of, there’s been zero critique. There’s been incredible appreciation and incredible thankfulness that we’re allowing it to happen. Other schools have literally come in and been so thankful that they’re allowed to come and watch because even in their own gyms, they’ve been being turned away…I think that feeling of just being like, oh my God, I can come watch.”
