As we all know, Lakewood offers of all kinds of sports, from cross country in the fall, to swimming in the winter, to track and field in the fall. In total, there are only sixteen different sports to choose from.

It’s also common knowledge that in order to graduate, students must have a total of .5 credits for gym. This means that students either have to take phys ed 1 and 2, a grand total of a year of gym, or play a sport for two seasons.

As it already is, I have a million things I could say about why physical education shouldn’t be a requirement for graduation, but that’s for another time.

So what happens to students who have been playing sports that the school doesn’t offer inside of clubs, or even students who play sports offered at school, but also in a club? Are they offered a physical education waiver?

The answer is no.

I see it as extremely unfair that students who have been doing a non-school-offered sport for years can’t even get a credit out of it.

“Basically I believe that the PE credits should solely consider the athleticism of the activity rather than the association with the school. Sports outside of school often require much more dedication, are of higher rigor and require many more hours of practice. If non-LHS athletes can prove the legitimacy of their sport, credit should be accepted,” said Lakewood senior Violet Jouriles.

Yes, Lakewood is lucky to offer all of the sports we do offer, but there are so many different sports outside of school people participate in too. A few examples being fencing, dancing, rowing, figure skating, sailing, and biking.

What’s going to have to change in order for those of us to get our sport to count for a gym credit? Is making a separate P.E. waiver for these students too much to ask for? All you need to do is add a line for your head coach to sign off on, which isn’t even included on the already-existing forms.