Due to the ongoing strike, interim superintendent John Robidoux has made the decision to cancel all sports and extracurricular activities for students.
On Tuesday, Nov. 12, the School Committee held a press conference to address the strike, for a brief moment they also addressed the extracurricular activities being canceled.
“He has our support for that,” School Committee chair Jenn Schaeffner said in regards to Robidoux’s call to cancel all activities. Schaeffner mentioned that the cancellation has nothing to do with the School Committee and that it is a call for the superintendent to make.
The Marblehead Education Association representatives disagreed. MEA president Jonathen Heller mentioned that the superintendent reports to the School Committee, implying that the School Committee could have told the superintendent to cancel.
A number of parents throughout the town of Marblehead feel as though their children are being used as pawns, suffering the consequences of a situation they have no involvement in. It has even been reported that a few parents filed for injunction on Tuesday morning. If approved an injunction would prohibit the superintendent from making the decision to cancel all activities.
At the MEA rally Tuesday afternoon a Marblehead high school athlete and coach spoke about the importance of sports and extracurriculars, that they teach students different lessons of no less importance than the lessons learned in the classroom.
The student speaker was a cross country athlete and class president for the class of 2026. He shared that the team this year is truly historic, that this past weekend they had become division two state champions. They were looking forward to bringing their talents to the All-States on Saturday, Nov. 11, but with the current stoppage of sports, it may be at risk.
Following the students’ speech, students, faculty, and community members began to chant, “let them run!” A few students also held signs documenting the success the cross country team has had throughout the duration of this school year.
Twenty-six year Marblehead coach and teacher Michael Lavender further pressed the issue behind the cancellation. Lavender stated that both the football and cross country teams have a good chance to win a state title. Currently they face the potential of having to forfeit their races and games. Lavender also mentioned that the chorus has raised over eight thousand dollars to attend two professional shows on Friday, Nov. 15, but now they’ve been canceled.
These are once in a lifetime opportunities for these students who, some, have worked their whole lives for. School days can be made up, but playoff games, championship games, and events cannot be.
The community showed their overwhelming support for the athletes, singers, and all students suffering from the strike. The School Committee and the MEA will continue negotiations in hopes to reach an agreement allowing students to go back to school.