The incident that sparked this debate involved a girl field hockey player being seriously injured by a male player.
WJAR News reports:
Dighton-Rehoboth athletes can opt out of mixed-gender gamesStudent athletes in Dighton-Rehoboth will have an important decision to make in the fall, they can now opt out of games against a team that has a player of the opposite sex, and will face no penalty.This unanimous decision was made by the Dighton-Rehoboth school committee.The incident that sparked the conversation was a field hockey game in November when the Dighton-Rehoboth team was playing a mixed-gender squad and a boy on the other team took a shot and ended up hitting a female player in the face.The community began to question if male athletes should be allowed to play on girls’ teams.“It was gruesome injuries, and it required a lot of dental reconstruction and things like that,” said Superintendent Bill Runey for Dighton-Rehoboth Regional High school. “This is a situation where when you do mix them, especially with something that had the danger built in like field hockey, as it is anyway, when you add the increased intensity we feel that it is inappropriate.”The Massachusetts Interscholastic Athletic Association allows boys to play on girls’ teams and vice versa, if the school does not offer the sport for both genders.When asked what the association thinks about Dighton-Rehoboth’s new policy, NBC 10 was sent this statement:“In response to your inquiry as it pertains to the recent decision made by the Dighton-Rehoboth School Committee, the Massachusetts Interscholastic Athletic Association reiterates its adherence to federal and state law that date back to 1972 and 1979, respectively.“The decision by the Dighton-Rehoboth School Committee was a local decision and as such the MIAA does not involve itself in local policy. The D-R membership and participation in the MIAA has always been valued and we will continue to serve them and all our member schools and districts as a resource.”
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