For years, we have been the underdog; for years, we have pushed ourselves against the biggest schools, but now we should take a step back and measure ourselves against our equals. Instead of having our results muddled by competing against schools with more students, we would be able to celebrate the victories our athletes work hard to achieve. A move to 2A would allow our trophy cases to be filled and all our teams to gain more success: state championships would be a realistic goal and district titles would be within our reach.

I take pride in our underdog status, but it seems unwise to pass up the opportunity to gain a level playing field. We would be able to take just as much pride in our results as we do now and the athletes would be rewarded for their efforts that span roughly three months.

The chance to challenge ourselves with larger schools would still be available in pre-season events, so we would not have to sacrifice our rivalries with Bellevue, Mercer Island, and Mount Si. Also, the commitment is only for the next two years meaning if the switch fails to yield positive results then the opportunity to reclassify would represent itself and we would at least have experienced what the switch brings and takes away for the sports teams.

The chance for success would also allow many individuals the chance to receive more notice and recognition for their efforts. A swimmer who was unable to make state at 3A would have a much better chance at 2A and it only seems fair to give the best opportunity for success to our athletes.

Some say that size does not matter, but in truth it does, in truth it means a lot. For every 100 high school students, roughly ten varsity caliber athletes with one to three of them being college-level athletes are represented in the group. So when competing with schools that have 100, 200, 300 plus more students than us we are placed at a severe disadvantage.  By making this switch we would be evening the playing field.