Hawaii public schools will not allow students who have been granted a geographic exception into a new school, and who played sports the previous year, to compete, even if they did not transfer for athletics. This is unfair.

I transferred to pursue better academic programs in STEM, but I also ran cross country and track for fun. Athletic extracurriculars are vital to students’ social-emotional learning, yet schools punish students who pursue better academic opportunities. At the college level, the NCAA got rid of a similar rule. In Hawaii, it’s my understanding that the system was applied to students who moved due to the Red Hill water crisis. This outdated and unfair rule should end as soon as possible.

Nina S. LoPresti

Ewa Beach

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