Achieving in school requires dedication, drive, and a solid set of goals. With all of these on your side, you can go on to accomplish great academic feats. Sports and school go hand in hand, and they can actually have a mutually beneficial relationship. Students who do well in athletics see a proportionate boost in school performance.

As a parent of four children in the Freeport schools, I have seen how sports have given a huge boost to their academic careers. Each has participated in soccer, indoor track, outdoor track and are all honor students. They participate in community events, clubs and play musical instruments. The oldest children attend Clark University and Brandeis University while the younger two have already competed on the international level and national level in their sport. Sports can provide kids with structure and a respite from the rigors of school.

We know that a regimen of all-work-and-no-play can be detrimental to kids’ well being. A routine that combines the two is the best option for children. Each activity works in tangent to offer a mental break from the other, and this ying-yang scenario offers what students need the most to succeed: balance. Creating a sense of balance in kids’ routines is essential to achieving success in academics. My kids have learned this balance along with teamwork on the field and collaboration in the classroom. Sports have helped them excel in the classroom, which prepares them to navigate the world around them.

As the communities look toward the referendum question pertaining to the building of a track in Freeport in January, I urge all parents to seriously look at the value of the correlation between sports and academics. This track and field project will be an investment into our children’s futures as they become tomorrow’s leaders.

Robin Monahan

Freeport