I would just like to start out by setting the record straight here and now: I do appreciate all that student government does to put on rallies for the school. I go to them, participate in them, and generally enjoy them. I fully understand the work, effort and planning put into the creation of the rallies.

However, that doesn’t mean I have no criticisms of the way rallies are executed.

As a student athlete, I think I speak for many athletes at Roseville High School when I say that even playing one sport is a large time commitment and a major area in need of a ton of effort.

The sports rally is intended to be a way of recognizing the student athletes on campus at the single, double, and especially, triple sport participation levels, as well as congratulating the student athletes that were able to acquire an athletic scholarship for their talents.

In the sports rally from a few weeks ago, I was disappointed to see that the three-sport athletes were recognized in a quick power point that slid off the screen faster than I could read the names.

The names were presented in the same way that the double and single sport athletes were: seemingly nullifying the prestige of the three-sport accomplishment, one of the hardest things to do as a student, having no down time all year while balancing academics constantly.

What’s worse is, when it was time to recognize the athletes who committed to schools for athletics. They called the names of the students before all of them could even get out of the stands and onto the floor, gave them a quick round of applause, and sent them back before we, the students, could give them an organized and proper congratulation.

Parents of the students who were there to see their child get recognized were only able to see their child go up for a second or two, maybe hear their child’s name over the buzz of the crowd, and snap a quick picture before the athletes returned to their seats and the rally concluded makes me dispirited.

Some of these parents took the day off of work to watch their son or daughter get recognized, but they could only see their name on a list that moved too rapidly for anyone to get the recognition they deserve.

Like I previously mentioned, the rallies that Student Government puts together are great ways to ignite school spirit and gather everyone together.

However, in the future I would like to see them have a bit more recognition for the student athletes – especially when the name of the rally is the “Spring Sports Rally.”