By Anthony Bosco
Evidence of these changes is already visible among scholastic programs throughout the city, but no change or at least commitment to change so far is as prominent as the establishment of the PSAL's website – www.opt-osfns.org/psal/ – a promise made by Klasfeld that has been kept.
In a letter from Klasfeld on the site, the deputy chancellor makes clear the plan laid forth by the Board of Education to return the PSAL “to the place of prominence it held in scholastic athletics for nearly 100 years.”
The website, Klasfeld goes on to say, “exposes the inner workings of the PSAL by posting the data relevant to the various programs regardless of its completeness. This in turn sets up a mechanism that forces the organization and management of the program.”
In essence, Klasfeld seems to be saying that organizing the “new PSAL” in such a manner will lead to increased performance by all those involved in the league and will most benefit those who deal hands-on with student-athletes: the coaches.
The website has just recently come online and it has already struck a chord with me. For not only does it feature a running list of updated game scores, it will soon add box scores, schedules and loads of related information that could only help a reporter like me.
Klasfeld's letter also calls on coaches and athletic directors to consistently feed the website information, thereby cutting down their paperwork and avoiding conflicts, such as scheduling problems, something more than rampant under the old system.
Another great feature of the site is the PSAL rules, especially regarding eligibility. Here these guidelines are spelled out in black and white. Also available at the site are links to other websites of interest to coaches, administrators and students.
The website is just a tool, however, a streamlining force that hopefully will produce the intended effect of providing a better governing body for public high school sports in the city. This will include improvement of the fields, equipment, the officiating and just about every minute detail under the PSAL's umbrella.
In the end, Klasfeld says, these improvements, though they will affect all involved, are primarily for the student-athletes. A better PSAL will lead to greater interest in games, not only from the public, but from college recruiters, many of whom seem to shy away from New York City when it comes to certain sports.
And I am most pleased with the PSAL apparently extending a hand of friendship to the press, in fact calling for cooperation from all the schools to allow media members – like me – access to games and other PSAL events. Klasfeld says, “Cooperation with the press is essential to our ability to impact people outside of the school system and, therefore, our ability to draw the attention of college recruiters to our students, raise the funds you need to adequately address some of your equipment needs, and expand the scope of our programs.”
This is a far cry from the PSAL of old, which seemed to operate with no such standards whatsoever. I have personally experienced trouble trying to attend games and have heard some incredible stories by colleagues of similar problems, including having to pay our way into games and watch from the bleachers with no access whatsoever to coaches or players. This, believe it or not, can really affect how one writes a story.
For a long time I have compared the PSAL, unfavorably, to the city's other scholastic sports governing body, the Catholic High School Athletic Association. The CHSAA has long been the Rolls Royce to the PSAL's Yugo, making it easy to understand why so many blue chip athletes find their way into the Catholic league, regardless of their religious beliefs.
Hopefully, that will change. A PSAL on par with, or even surpassing, the CHSAA can only lead to better things for all the student-athletes in New York City. Maybe then they can actually bring back the old Metro Bowl, an annual battle between the two organizations' top teams in a variety of sports that went the way of the Do-Do bird when the CHSAA simply won everything year in and year out.
If these improvements do filter down to every last bit of the PSAL, as hoped, I don't see why the public school teams would not succeed as the CHSAA teams do.
It is not talent so much as discipline in certain sports that makes a huge difference on the playing field, which is either lacking in the students or not enforced by the coaches. This could all change in the near future and I for one am enthusiastic at the possibilities.
I applaud the Board of Ed, Levy, Klasfeld and the “new PSAL” for trying to change what has needed change for far too long.
But there is still a long way to go.
