WINTER SPORTS UPDATE - Nov. 18th, 2020

November 18, 2020

District 219 Athletes and Parents, 

Many of you have probably become aware that the state of Illinois is moving back to Tier 3 beginning Friday, November 20th. Like all of you, we are hopeful this is a temporary setback, and that we are back in person soon. Of course, we will keep you posted on any new developments, and we wish nothing but the best for you and your family as we all do our best to navigate these difficult situations. We will continue with in-person practice today, Wednesday, November 18th. We will pivot to virtual practices for each of our teams starting Thursday, November 19th.  Please see the statement below from the director of the IHSA:

From IHSA Executive Director Craig Anderson:

“The Illinois High School Association (IHSA) recognizes that today’s announcement by Governor Pritzker will temporarily pause the IHSA’s winter sports season. We remain optimistic that these new mitigations, coupled with the emergence of a vaccine, will aid in creating participation opportunities in the New Year for IHSA student-athletes in winter, spring, and summer sports. The IHSA Board of Directors will meet as scheduled on November 19, 2020, to continue plotting out potential paths for IHSA sport and activity participation through the remainder of the school year. Although representatives from the Governor’s office and the Illinois Department of Public Health will be unable to attend the meeting, today’s updated guidance from Governor Pritzker will aid the Board’s decision-making. We have asked Deputy Governor Ruiz and Dr. Ezike to engage with us in the near future, so that we can collaborate on developing a plan to safely conduct IHSA sports and activities as soon as possible. IHSA schools have been exemplary in adhering to state regulations throughout this pandemic and we hope that non-school programs will hold themselves to the same standard as we all put the long-term health and safety of our fellow citizens ahead of short-term athletic competition.”

Thank you for your continued patience and understanding,

Brett Bildstein, Niles North Athletic Director        

Dr. Jim Edwards, Niles North Principal         

12/31/2020 8:34 PM

Winter Sports Information

Hello Niles North Families,

Last week our District approved the following sports listed below, which will begin on Monday, November 16th.  Each sport is categorized as “low risk” by the Illinois Department of Public Health.

Boys Bowling

Girls Bowling

Boys Swim and Dive

Coed Dance

Coed Cheer

Girls Gymnastics

Please note that the Illinois High School Association has moved Wrestling to the Summer Season, since it is classified as “high risk.”  Although the IHSA has currently slated Basketball to compete in the Winter Season, the IDPH has categorized Basketball as “high risk.”  You can view our District’s statement regarding Basketball HERE.  

Specific sport information for our Winter Sports can be found HERE, which includes practice/tryout times.  We will host a general informational Webinar for parents this Thursday (Nov 12th) at 6:30 PM.  To attend the webinar, please click this LINK.  Additionally, each program will also have an individual parent meeting so that everyone feels comfortable with our safety protocols.  Those meetings will also be conducted virtually and will be communicated by each individual program.  

To sign up for Winter Sports, please register your athlete on our 8 to 18 website.  Directions for how to register can be found HERE.  

In addition to registering, each student-athlete must have a valid sports physical (within the last 13 months) in order to participate.  Student-athletes can bring their physical to the first day of practice or they can scan/email it to Peggy Howard (marhow@d219.org).  

Feel free to access the Parent Webinar video HERE.

If you have any questions, please contact the Head Coach of each sport or the Athletic Directors (emails listed below).

Brett Bildstein                        Danae Russell

brebil@d219.org                    danruss@d219.org

12/14/2020 9:54 PM