2013-2014 landon family athletics handbook landon school

Sports Exemptions
Team Manager Exemption
An Upper School student may request an exemption from Landon’s sports requirement in order to
serve as a team manager of a Varsity team. As a Team Manager, the student support the coaching staff
and players by aiding with equipment, statistics, game scoring and filming. Team Managers are strongly
encouraged to participate often in appropriate team drills and conditioning at the coach’s discretion. Team
managers are required to attend all team practices and games (home and away). A student may only serve
as a Team Manager for one season per school year. No team will have more than one Team Manager. This
exemption is not available to Freshman.
Team Managers can become critical members of the overall support network for a varsity team, and the
experience is useful and relevant for a student seeking subsequent opportunities in the ever-competitive
fields of sports management, sports business, athletic training, or coaching.
Boys petitioning for a Team Manager exemption must meet with the Athletic Director prior to the start
of the season in which they will be the Team Manager.
Daily Eligibility and Health-Related Exemptions
Upper School
In order to be eligible to participate in an interscholastic game, a student is expected to be in full
attendance during that school day. A student who is not able to attend to his academic responsibilities
should not, under normal circumstances, be involved in extra-academic performances, particularly if
the cause of his absence is illness. Exceptions can be made, however, for unavoidable commitments, for
scheduled appointments or for other situations where it is clear that the student has made a good faith
effort to meet all of his school responsibilities.
It is the responsibility of the student to inform his coach as soon as possible if he will not be or has not
been in full attendance at school on the day of a game. If the coach feels that there is sufficient reason
to consider an exception to the rule so that the student can play, he is to confer with the Division Head,
Athletic Director or the Headmaster for a ruling on the case.
Middle School
If, for medical reasons, a boy is unable to participate in sports on a given afternoon, a note to that effect
should be submitted to the Middle School office by 10 a.m. If a boy is to be excused for an extended
period of time, the dates are to be included in the note. In addition, all boys are expected to attend
practice unless otherwise specified. Landon considers athletics a vital part of its educational mission and
trusts that parents will avoid casually requesting that their son be excused from participating in sports.
If during the day a boy becomes ill, he must report to the School nurse who will determine his capacity for
participating in sports that day. A boy will not take it upon himself to miss a practice nor should he ask
his coach at the beginning of practice to be excused. A boy who has asked to be excused from participating
in sports will be expected to observe sports that day unless there is a reason he cannot go out-of-doors.
Lower School - VPH (Very Poor Health)
If a boy is feeling under the weather, but is not really “sick,” a parent may want to keep him out of sports.
Parents should send a note to the School nurse, Mrs. Weiss, and she will put the boy on VPH. Students
cannot put themselves on VPH; only the nurse has that authority. If a boy asks to be taken out of sports
for a reason other than sickness, parents will want to further address the reason, as it is important to
understand what concerns their child. They should not allow him to use VPH as a general excuse.
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