School should come first, but sports are important too

By Jason Perloff and Leo Marzigliano

October 10, 2024

Youthcast Media Group®

Student-athletes in their graduating gowns on the basketball court.

There is a reason student comes first in the name “student-athlete.” Any teacher or coach will tell you that.

Still, it’s not easy to be both. There is only so much time in the day. Student-athletes at Annandale High School must use time-management skills to be their best in the classroom and on the field.

“Balancing school and running track at the same time can be tough because of the excess work from school,” long-distance runner Jakob McElveen says. “It is hard to stay up late and do work, especially after practice.”

Fairfax County Public Schools mandate that students carry a Grade Point Average of at least 2.00 — with no failing grades — in order to be eligible to participate in extracurricular activities.

McElveen is a Senior who is an International Baccalaureate (IB) diploma candidate. This means he takes some of the most difficult classes that Annandale offers for his grade level.

“I recently told my coach I'd have to miss some practice in order to catch up in my math class,” McElveen says. “Fortunately, this did not cost me my spot on the team, but I am not able to show up for my team 100 percent of the time due to my school work.”

Junior Lily Rumpf, who plays varsity soccer, is also a candidate for an IB diploma.

“I feel I am able to balance my work and sports at the same time,” she says. “I find time during school, along with after school, to complete any work from my classes.”

Annandale runs on a schedule of Red Days and White Days, as in the school colors. W4 is a 30-minute advisory block on White Days during which students can catch up on their studies. Following W4, students get a 48-minute block called Pride Time, which can also be used as a study hall.

“I get lots of work from my IB chemistry class, which I would say is my toughest class,” Rumpf says. “I use the W4 and Pride Time blocks to do a lot of this work. If need be, I sometimes use my classes I have less work in to finish up some work (for the harder classes), or simply finish the work at home.”

The AHS website says W4 is a time for students and staff to “build relationships, create community, clarify expectations, and share and cultivate school values.” The site says Pride Time is “focused on providing structured support for students’ academic needs through targeted intervention” as well as “a study hall with opportunities to work on school assignments.”

“I always utilize the W4 and Pride Time blocks as they help give me time to prepare for tests,” says Senior Mathew Giron Blanco, a varsity lacrosse player. “It beats staying up late at night to study. I am awake and focused.”

Antony Gomez, was lacrosse captain for the Atoms, who now attends Marymount University in Arlington VA. During his time at Annandale, Gomex said, “my grades this year really matter. I enjoy my time on (the team) and I feel I am able to maintain a good GPA along with being present to the team. I do get a decent workload for some of my classes. However, I never find myself needing to stay up too late or miss practice because of this work.”

Jason Perloff and Leo Mazigliano are seniors at Virginia’s Annandale High School, one of YMG’s school partners.