If we wanted to, we would

The school annually celebrates intramurals where students can show off their amazing athletic skills. But that’s it— it stops there. According to Ms. Ivy Grace Grafilo, a former MAPEH coordinator of the school, the Department of Education mandated that science high schools are not allowed to enter athletic competitions as the school must be exclusive on academics— specifically in the field of science, mathematics, and research. And even though she wanted to support students who have athletic skills as it is one of her specialties, she can only do so far since rules are rules.

Contrary to Grafilo’s statement on DepEd’s rules on science high schools, several RSHS were seen attending in such competitions. To name a few, Gusa Regional Science High School - X, specifically their Volleyball team ranked second place during the 2017 District Meet while Regional Science High School for Region 2 recently bagged 26 gold medals from their inter-high school meet. Are they the exceptions? This only goes to show that if we wanted to, we would.

In the recent survey conducted by the school’s official publication, 34 out of 50 respondents answered ‘Yes’ if they play any sports and the majority specified basketball, volleyball, and badminton. When asked whether or not they are in favor of the school joining athletic competitions, 47 out of 50 favored the notion stating, “Even though I am certain that ALSCI places a greater emphasis on academics, I believe it is a wonderful idea for the students who have a passion for sports to have the chance to show off their skills. Who knows? Maybe they’ll be able to win all of the games and help our school come out on top.” On the other hand, three students rejected the idea citing that AlSci is an academic-centered learning institution and should stay the way it is.

But even if the majority of the students and some parents agree to let the school attend athletic meets, the lack of sports equipment may be one of the factors holding us back. Though Sarangani National Sports Academy sits only beside the campus, their students are their number one priority in training and AlSci inserting in the queue may deem unfair to their athletes. So AlSci athletes would still be left behind, if ever.

Karl Santarin, a former student of AlSci, stated that transferring to Holy Trinity College to pursue and hone his basketball skills helped a lot as it exposes him to different players from different teams and gave him lots of experiences. He also added that he noticed his improvement in his playing skills ever since he transferred to a sportinclined school.

While certainty is still a blur, we hope that one day, ANSHS will finally open its doors to athletic competitions and let students flourish their own capabilities— producing students who not only excel in STEM fields but also in sports. Who knows? Maybe this school will generate stellar athletes like Michael Jordan, Hidilyn Diaz, or Carlo Yulo, right?