Abington Friends School

Every 6th-8th grade Middle School student is required to participate in at least one season of athletics each year. After-school sports are optional for 5th graders. Students who participate extensively in a sport or physical activity that AFS does not offer (for example, dance, horseback riding) are eligible for exemptions to this policy. All questions about athletic requirements should be directed to Lisa Treadway-Kurtz.

Middle School students sign up for their sports choices for the year during the first week of school. These choices are non-binding and any interested student may come out for the first day of soccer, cross-country, or girls’ tennis practice.

All new and returning students who are interested in playing interscholastic athletics during the 2024-25 school year are required to submit an updated PIAA Athletics form, which includes clearance from a medical professional. Those forms are available on Magnus Health, accessed through the AFS Portal. Please direct any question to AFS’s NovaCare Certified Athletic Trainer, Alexis Bonisese. Forms must be submitted in order for students to begin participation in the program.

In the fall and spring, practices are held on Mondays through Thursdays. In the winter, there are no practices or games on Tuesdays. All practices are on the AFS campus. Fall and spring tennis practices are on AFS’s Tennis Courts. The cross-country and track teams run on campus. Soccer teams practice on one of AFS’s four soccer fields on campus, with exact location determined by availability. Basketball teams practice in either the Berman Center or the Triangle Gym. Wrestling is in the Cohen Family Wrestling Room on the 2nd floor of the Triangle Gym. Baseball, softball and lacrosse teams practice on their respective fields on campus.

Students in grades 5 and 6 will be walked to the changing areas on the first days of practice. Coaches are responsible for supervising the changing areas before and after practice throughout the season.

Games usually begin at 3:30 p.m. or 3:45 p.m. with occasional 4:30 p.m. or 4:45 p.m. games.

Information about games and practices are posted on the AFS website and updated regularly. Changes to the athletics schedule are posted on the Athletics website and shared with families via email.

If inclement weather forces cancellation of a game or practice, students may leave at the completion of the school day.

Families pick up students in front of the Berman Center after the completion of practices. AFS provides transportation back to campus after every away contest with a predicted return time for each game available through each team’s game calendar. Families may also transport their students directly home from away contests as long as they notify a coach of their intent before doing so. AFS offers a courtesy shuttle for students to the Jenkintown train station, leaving at 5:30pm.

All students will be transported to the site of the contest and back to AFS by school bus or van. Parents who travel to the game may take their children home directly from the game if they let the coach know before leaving the site of the contest. Upon arriving at AFS, students will wait,  under coach supervision, to be picked up at location announced.

Information about away games, including location and directions, can be found on the athletics calendar. Approximate return times are also posted as part of the calendar listing.

AFS often uses a “Flight” system to create teams of players with similar abilities instead of grouping student-athletes by grade level. “Flight” decisions will be announced after the start of practice.

AFS generally offers two options for Middle School tennis players — an “Interscholastic” team for more experienced players and a “Developmental” team for less experienced and younger players. The “Interscholastic” team focuses more on competitive tennis, playing 6-8 matches against other middle school “A” level teams. The “Developmental” team focuses more on individual skill development and may play a few matches later in the season against other “B” level teams. On days when an AFS Upper School Tennis team has a match, the Developmental team will not have practice.

AFS offers two seasons of tennis each academic year – a fall season and a spring season. Historically at AFS and amongst our peer schools, the fall season has been for those players who identify as female and the spring season for those who identify as male. We have come to realize that this binary designation may be too restrictive and have adjusted the parameters for participation in the tennis program at AFS.

Any student who wishes to play tennis at AFS may play during either the fall season or the spring season, but not during both in the same academic year. Participation in interscholastic match play will be determined by coaches with those identifying as female receiving preference in the fall season and those identifying as male in the spring season. Gender diverse and non-binary individuals will be eligible to play in matches during the season in which they feel most comfortable doing so.

Middle School Cross-Country has no maximum team size, and is open to runners of all levels. The program is geared toward developing a love of running in adolescents. All interested runners will be on the team and be eligible to run in meets. Individual development within a supportive team environment is stressed.

While we in the Athletic Department certainly understand that the hectic nature of adolescent life may cause students to need to miss practices or games because of other important commitments, we hope that all prospective student-athletes and their families view participation in the athletic program as a serious and worthwhile commitment. It is our hope that students will accept the responsibility to inform their coaches beforehand of conflicts, and that parents will make every effort to enable their children to attend scheduled practices and games, whenever possible.

Though winning certainly has a place in Middle School athletics, it is not the primary focus of our coaches, teams, or program. Rather, we hope to provide a positive athletic experience for all student-athletes, in part, by giving them the opportunity to test their skills in a game situation. Coaches will make every effort to play every student-athlete in each game. There is no guarantee of exactly equal playing time for every child, and parents are asked to respect the coaches’ decisions about playing time.

Soccer players must have shin guards and non-metal cleats. T-Shirts and shorts are fine for soccer practice, and all players will be issued game jerseys and shorts. Cross-country runners should have appropriate running shoes for practices and meets. Practice apparel for cross-country consists of T-shirts and shorts. Runners will be issued tops and shorts for meets. Tennis players need their own racquets and appropriate footwear. They will be issued AFS Tennis uniforms for matches.

All issued uniforms should be returned to the Athletics Office in a timely manner upon completion of the season. Families will be billed for outstanding uniforms.

AFS partners with NovaCare Rehabilitation Services for our athletic-training needs, and we have a Certified Athletic Trainer, Alexis Bonisese, on staff. If an athlete suffers an injury during a practice or game, the coach will notify Alexis, who will assess the child’s injury,  initiate appropriate treatment and be in immediate contact with families about serious injuries. Alexis supervises rehabilitation for all sports-related injuries for AFS student-athletes, so if your child is unable to perform due to injury, he or she will need to be engaged in rehabilitation exercises with Alexis. If an injury requires a visit to a doctor, the student will need to provide the AFS Athletic Department with a “return to play” form signed by the consulting medical professional.

Alexis can be reached at abonisese@abingtonfriends.net or 215-881-7692.

AFS has undertaken many initiatives that focus on the recognition and treatment of concussions. AFS coaches are trained on concussion recognition and treatment. All AFS student-athletes and families are expected to read and sign the Concussion Information Sheet and Concussion Acknowledgement Form as part of their PIAA Athletics Permission Form. A student-athlete who exhibits symptoms of a possible concussion will be closely monitored by his or her coaches and by AFS’s Certified Athletic Trainer, Alexis Bonisese and graduated “return to play” and “return to learn” protocols will be initiated if warranted after a doctor’s visit.

At AFS, we believe that regular physical activity is an integral part of our educational program. The AFS Athletics program is composed of both interscholastic and instructional athletics options, which are offered seasonally throughout the academic year. The activities take place mostly after the completion of the school day.

Every Upper School student is required to accumulate Roo Physical Activity Credits (RooPACS) each year in upper school. Students who participate extensively in a sport or physical activity that AFS does not offer (for example, dance, horseback riding), may obtain RooPACS for their participation in this activity outside of AFS. All questions about the athletic requirements should be directed to Lisa Treadway-Kurtz.

Interscholastic athletics involve membership on a sport-specific team, daily practices directed by a qualified coaching staff, and a schedule of competitive contests against other schools. Instructional athletics is a more individualized, non-competitive program that introduces students to lifetime physical-fitness activities. Both interscholastic and instructional athletic offerings fulfill the AFS Physical Activity Requirement. Students may also meet their Physical Activity requirement through participation in co-curricular programs not affiliated with AFS Athletics.

At AFS, there is a place in the interscholastic athletics program for every interested student-athlete. We do not cut athletes from our programs. In many sports, AFS offers several levels of play. If a student wants to play a sport, he or she will be able to do so at the appropriate level.

RooPAC Table (2023-24) Revised: 4/25/22

RooPACs required per year

All new and returning students who are interested in playing interscholastic athletics during the 2023-24 school year are required to submit an updated PIAA Athletics form, which includes clearance from a medical professional. Those forms are available on Magnus Health, accessed through the AFS Portal. Please direct any question to AFS’s NovaCare Certified Athletic Trainer, Alexis Bonisese. Forms must be submitted in order for students to begin participation in the program.

Pre-season training for the Upper School’s fall interscholastic teams traditionally begin during the last two weeks of the summer. An exact preseason training schedule will be posted on the AFS Athletics website in July. The fall season of AFS’s instructional Personal Fitness program generally begins during the first week of the school year.

Season start dates and preseason information for Winter and Spring sports can be found on the athletic calendar and are announced to Upper School students over the course of the school year.

Upon enrollment, any new student interested in playing a sport should contact Jeff Bond to indicate interest and to learn about possible off-season skills-development opportunities.

Upper School Athletics at AFS are a five- or six-day-a-week commitment for 1 ½ to 2 hours per day.

Information about games and practices are posted on the AFS website and updated regularly. Changes to the athletics schedule are posted on the Athletics website, on the calendar and on AFS Twitter https://twitter.com/afs_roos.

If inclement weather forces cancellation of a game or practice, students may leave upon the completion of the school day.

Families are responsible for arranging transportation home after the completion of practice.  A courtesy shuttle transports students to the Jenkintown train station. For a fee, students may also sign up for door-to-door van service. Families interested in either of these “late van” options are advised to contact AFS Transportation at 215-886-4350 x. 3981.

All student-athletes will be transported to the site of the contest and back to AFS by school bus or van. Parents who travel to the game may take their children home directly from the game if they let the coach know of their intentions before leaving the site of the contest.

Information about away games, including location and directions, can be found on the athletics calendar. Approximate return times also are posted on the calendar.

While we in the the Athletic Department certainly understand that the hectic nature of adolescent life may cause students to need to miss practices or games for other important commitments, we hope that all prospective student-athletes and their families view participation in the athletic program as a serious and worthwhile commitment. It is our hope that students will accept the responsibility to inform their coaches beforehand of these rare conflicts, and that parents will make every effort to enable their children to attend scheduled practices and games whenever possible.

Coaches’ decisions about playing time and team role may be influenced by practice attendance.

Though winning certainly has a place in the AFS Athletics program, it is never the sole focus of our coaches, teams, or program. Rather, we hope to provide a positive athletic experience for all student-athletes, in part by giving them the opportunity to test their skills in a game situation. Coaches will make every effort to communicate directly with student-athletes about their playing time. There is no guarantee of exactly equal playing time for every child, however, and parents are asked to respect the coaches’ decisions about playing time.

AFS issues game uniforms for all of our interscholastic teams. Practice apparel varies by sport, and usually players will provide their own practice gear. AFS provides much of the equipment necessary to play interscholastic sports, except for personal items like mouthpieces, goggles, headgear, and shin guards. Any student-athlete who wishes to use his or her own equipment during the season is asked to check with his or her coach prior to doing so.

All issued uniforms should be returned to the Athletics Office in a timely manner upon completion of the season. Families will be billed for outstanding uniforms. Most uniform questions can be addressed by Brian Schiff.

AFS partners with NovaCare Rehabilitation Services for our athletic training needs, and we have a Certified Athletic Trainer, Alexis Bonisese, on staff. If an athlete suffers an injury during a practice or game, the coach will notify Alexis, who will assess the child’s injury, initiate appropriate treatment and be in immediate contact with families about serious injuries. Alexis supervises rehabilitation for all sports-related injuries for AFS student-athlete, so if your child is unable to perform due to injury, he or she will need to be engaged in rehabilitation exercises with Alexis. If an injury requires a visit to a doctor, the student will need to provide the AFS Athletic Department with a “return to play” form signed by the consulting medical professional.

Alexis can be reached at abonisese@abingtonfriends.net or 215-881-7692.

AFS has undertaken many initiatives that focus on the recognition and treatment of concussions. AFS coaches are trained on concussion recognition and treatment. All AFS student-athletes and families are expected to read and sign the Concussion Information Sheet and Concussion Acknowledgement Form as part of their Athletics Permission Form. A student-athlete who exhibits symptoms of a possible concussion will be closely monitored by his or her coaches and by AFS’s Certified Athletic Trainer, Alexis Bonisese and graduated “return to play” and “return to learn” protocols will be initiated if warranted after a doctor’s visit.

Soccer: https://tinyurl.com/afsfallstoresoccer

Tennis: https://tinyurl.com/afsfallstoretennis

Cross-Country: https://tinyurl.com/afsfallstorexc