Honoring the athletes of the class of 2020 for their incomplete seasons and shortened high school athletic career due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

WHEREAS, In their last semester of high school, seniors typically have to deal with the stress of graduation and college decisions, but athletes typically feel the extra strain of recruitment, scholarship offers, and training; and

WHEREAS, The recruitment process before COVID-19 had college representatives attending games, hosting clinics, and overnight practice visits, all things that COVID-19 put a significant barrier in doing; and

WHEREAS, At the beginning of the pandemic, many parts of the recruiting process moved online that pushed for game videos, resumes, and academic pasts be submitted virtually, however for many athletes recruiting events and videos are expensive to attend and produce; and

WHEREAS, For many high school students, extra-curriculars like sports, music, and art motivate students to go to school and work hard academically to ensure eligibility; and

WHEREAS, With an estimated 55% of students in high school having played at least one sport in the 4 years of high school, the COVID-19 pandemic hurts thousands of Philadelphia youth; and

WHEREAS, The students had a virtual graduation, disorganized last semesters, and tainted athletic careers all caused by the COVID-19 pandemic but held their heads up, worked hard, and accomplished much even with many hurdles; now, therefore, be it

RESOLVED, BY THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF PHILADELPHIA, That we hereby honor the athletes of the class of 2020 for their uncompleted and shortened high school athletic career due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

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