By Kathy Chouteau
When the time came for Richmond College Prep Schools to enter a sports league, the Athletic Department evoked the movie Field of Dreams’ motto: “If you build it, [they] will come.”
After hitting roadblocks when approaching middle school sports leagues, that’s exactly what the school did.
“We did what we thought [was] the next best move, to make our own sports league,” said Chris Quijano, assistant PE coach at Richmond College Prep, a TK through 8th grade charter school in Richmond. He led the charge to start a league along with the school’s Athletic Director Edward Augustus.
During the 2017-to-2018 timeframe, the school joined forces with the City of Richmond’s Community Services Department and formed what is informally called the “Richmond Charter Sports League.” The league is an “open door” of approximately 10 teams, according to Quijano, who said that it’s typically made up of other charter schools, RPAL, nonprofits and City of Richmond teams. In the past, teams from Oakland and Vallejo have even been part of the mix.
This year’s league includes: Richmond College Prep Schools; Caliber Beta Academy; Making Waves Academy; Summit K2; Summit Tamalpais; Aspire Public Schools; Manzanita Charter; Richmond Charter Academy; Richmond Police Activities League (RPAL); Mare Island Technology Academy; and Griffin Technology Academy.
Sports covered in the league include soccer (boys/girls/co-ed); basketball (boys/girls/co-ed); flag football (predominantly co-ed); and girls’ volleyball (very popular). Most of the teams serve middle schoolers, except for flag football, which also has an elementary school program.
“The league itself is financially affordable as we want to make sure that students can play as long as they maintain a high academic standard,” said Quijano. He said that at the home of the Richmonnd College Prep lions, students must have a “C” or above average, with the caveat that if they are falling below that level—but are showing effort and meeting behavioral requirements for their school—they can still play. Each team determines their own players’ academic and behavioral requirements.
Quijano believes there’s a lesson for the student athletes in the school founding a league when the chips were down. The lesson, he said, is “perseverance.” He shared, “That’s something we want to ingrain into our students. When things get tough, if you can keep trying at it, your effort will show if you put your heart and soul into it.”
Those interested in joining the Richmond Charter Sports League can contact Maurice Range, Recreation Program Coordinator, City of Richmond, Community Services-Recreation, at [email protected] or 510-620-6960.
