The Importance of School Sports by Kayla

The Importance of School Sports by Kayla - July 2017 Scholarship Essay

If I were to give a TED talk it would be about the importance of sports at a high school level. I’m currently an athlete in girl’s lacrosse, but just this year we almost lost the organization that oversees lacrosse where I’m from in Wisconsin. If this organization fails it would be unlikely that many schools in our area would continue to have lacrosse teams.
The first thing I would discuss is how sports help the kids. Sports in high school promote sportsmanship as well as teamwork. It is important that everyone attain both these skills because they are vital in the workplace and in all aspects in life. Sports also give kids a safe place to release anger and stress about school and family life. Without sports many kids would go straight from a stressful school day back home to place where some of them might still have a lot of stress. Sports provide a break from stress as well as a way to safely release pent up energy and stress.
Another thing I would discuss is how sports are socially important. I have met some of my best friends through lacrosse. Sports allow kids to meet people who share the same interest in the sport and possibly other activities. For me it was always easier to meet people in a smaller environment like a sport as compared to school which can seem huge and overwhelming. Being social is extremely important and sports provide a safe environment for kids to connect with each other.
To end my talk I would urge parents and adults to support their community and school sports by volunteering for the organizations and clubs. Many sports not only lacrosse struggle to find volunteers to run the organization meetings in my community, and so many sports have looked at no longer having and overseeing organization to run them. Without an overseeing organization many schools may lose some of their sports programs which would be devastating to the students. Hopefully by showing people how important sports truly are to students health and happiness I could encourage parents to volunteer and keep sports running.