UPDATE (April 8, 2020): Per Governor Kate Brown’s announcement that Oregon schools will be closed to in-person learning for the remainder of the school year, the Oregon School Activities Association (OSAA) has cancelled all remaining Spring activities and state championships.
For more, click here.
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WILSONVILLE, Ore. -- The OSAA Executive Board held an online meeting Wednesday (April 1, 2020) to discuss the latest developments regarding the COVID-19 situation, the OSAA reports.
The Board decided to continue its current suspension of Spring activities but chose not to cancel any other remaining state championships at this time.
Up to this point the Board has aligned its decisions regarding OSAA’s education-based activities with the Governor’s school closure orders and plans to continue on that path. Board member discussion centered around the latest information sent out from the Oregon Department of Education (ODE) earlier this week stating that there is a very real potential that students may not return to school this academic year. If the Governor orders that in-person student learning is shut down for the remainder of this school year, the OSAA will continue to align with the school closures and also cancel its Spring activities and state championships.
The OSAA staff has been in communication with all Spring state championship venues and shared potential challenges they are running into with the Board. In particular, Western Oregon University has shut down all of its athletic facilities until June 30 and will not be able to host the 3A, 2A, 1A Track and Field State Championships. Staff members are contacting other potential track venues to determine interest and availability.
Board members discussed the potential of shifting Spring activities and state championships into the summer and are not supportive of that concept at this time. Concerns included increased staffing and personnel costs for school districts already facing uncertain financial impacts, scheduling issues regarding facility availability, plus student/family commitments for jobs, travel, etc.
The OSAA staff has been working with Dr. Mick Koester, our Chief Medical Advisor and chair of the OSAA’s Sports Medicine Advisory Committee, to develop acclimatization guidelines that the Board approved to emphasize student safety if schools are able to reconvene this Spring. Included would be:
- an initial 7-day period with practices only, no contests
- limiting practices to once per day and no more than three hours in length
- maintaining the current requirement of no more than six consecutive days without a rest day
- continuing heat warnings as appropriate to weather and baseball pitch count limitations
- limiting the number of contests allowed in a week specific to each activity (more details to come later)
- emphasizing late afternoon starts and weekend contests when possible to limit loss of class time
The OSAA Executive Board has an online meeting scheduled for April 15 to discuss developments regarding this situation and take any action they deem necessary regarding Spring activities and state championships. The OSAA will post updated information to the website as well as send an update to all schools following that meeting.
Visit http://www.osaa.org/coronavirus for OSAA policies, plus health and safety resources, related to COVID-19.
Included on this page are all memos and media releases from OSAA since early March, along with a series of Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) designed to answer the most common questions we have been receiving.
Contact OSAA staff via email with any questions as they are working remotely (http://www.osaa.org/contact).
"Thank you for all your efforts on behalf of the students and families in our state. Stay safe and be well."
Frequently Asked Questions
The following are frequently asked questions relating to OSAA's policies regarding the COVID-19 outbreak. If you have a question, please contact Peter Weber at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or contact the OSAA office at (503) 682-6722.
1. Q. May schools participate in out-of-state practices or contests/events during this suspension period?
A. No, the suspension period for practices and contests/events applies to all OSAA member schools, regardless of where the practice or contest/event occurs.
2. Q. May coaches hold "voluntary" or "optional" practices during this suspension period?
A. No, coaches are not able to work directly with students during this suspension period. Coaches may not be involved in circumventing this policy.
3. Q. May coaches communicate with students/athletes?
A. Coaches can communicate with students in accordance with local school district policy, but not organize or participate in workouts. We encourage coaches to provide support to students during this stressful time.
4. Q. Does this suspension period apply to public schools only?
A. The suspension period applies to all OSAA member schools, public and private, in all OSAA-sanctioned activities.
5. Q. How should schools correctly mark baseball and softball games during the suspension period on the OSAA website?
A. Games should be marked as cancelled, not deleted. This keeps the game on a team's schedule in case it's able to be made up at a later date.
6. Q. May students or coaches access school facilities during this suspension period?
A. During this moratorium-like period, there shall be no high school facility usage by activity/athletic staff and students/teams. Field maintenance is allowed.
7. Q. May groups of students gather to workout?
A. While the OSAA encourages students to stay active, we discourage groups of students from getting together in alignment with local and federal social distancing guidelines.
8. Q. Will OSAA State Championships that have been cancelled be rescheduled?
A. No, due to the numerous issues regarding rescheduling including, but not limited to, site availability, staffing, scheduling conflicts, etc., cancelled OSAA State Championships will not be rescheduled.
9. Q. Does the suspension period apply to off-season fall and winter activities?
A. All OSAA sports and activities fall under this guidance. There will be no practice or gatherings for any OSAA sports or activities. This includes Rule of Two, 6A/5A Pilot, and individual sports.
