Away Game: Students Who Play Sports for Other Schools

What if your high school doesn’t offer your favorite sport? Today’s disparities in access to sports teams stem from a policy pushed by former Mayor Michael Bloomberg to replace large high schools with smaller ones. These new schools, largely serving Black and Latino students, didn't have the enrollment to field an array of teams — creating a systemic deficit that still disproportionately affects students of color.As part of a 2022 settlement of a class action lawsuit arguing that the Public Schools Athletic League, or PSAL, and the Education Department were discriminating against Black and Latino students, the city created the PSAL All-Access Program. Through “Individual Access,” students who want to play a sport their school doesn’t offer can join a nearby school’s team. Roughly 1,500 students participated on teams through the program in the 2023-24 school year, Education Department officials previously said. Still, just 38% of Black and Latino students went to a school with 20 or more teams, compared to 61% of students who are white, Asian American, multiracial, or belong to other groups, one sports equity advocate found.P.S. Weekly producers Jasper Mallorca and Roberto Bailey discuss the landscape of high school sports access in New York City schools. Jasper interviews Noah Moore about what it’s like to be on another school’s team. Noah, a senior at Manhattan’s High School of Art and Design, played football for Stuyvesant High School. Jasper, also an Art and Design senior, ran cross country for a team based at Lab Collaborative and the Museum School.Their experiences offer a window into the city's patchwork sports-access fix — and its limitationsSend us Fan MailP.S. Weekly is available on major podcast platforms, including Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Reach us at [email protected]. Weekly is a collaboration between Chalkbeat and The Bell, made possible by generous support from The Pinkerton Foundation.