School sports during a pandemic has become an issue that is “truly life or death,” so the Lorain Titans will stay off their fields of play this fall, said Lorain City Schools CEO/Superintendent Jeff Graham.

On Aug. 19, Graham affirmed his earlier decision that the novel coronavirus pandemic would force the cancellation of close contact sports and marching band for the fall season of the 2020-2021 school year.

His announcement came a day after Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine announced fall sports could go forward.

That prompted a number of questions from families asking if the governor’s announcement affected Lorain’s potential for close proximity sports or activities including football, volleyball, soccer, cheerleading and band.

Graham said the school administration “is optimistic about the possibility of moving fall sports to the spring, assuming the spread of the coronavirus continues to decrease and that conditions in spring are more safe for our students.”

But for now, sports remain cancelled for fall, he said.

Weighing student growth against the risk of the COVID-19, Graham said any decision will hurt children.

He called it an “awful thing” that student athletes won’t play, but the decision was made after conversations with Lorain school board members, district administrators and health professionals.

“One of the determining factors for this decision was our inability to keep our children and their families safe under current conditions, and especially on the field of competitive play,” Graham said. “The governor’s announcement doesn’t change those realities for us here in Lorain, especially when the research is very clear that infection rates are significantly higher for minority and low-income children.

“One of the questions I’ve been struggling with the most from our parents, is why we don’t just trust them to make the right decision for their children. But for me, it’s not about that.

“Yes, many parents are enforcing masks and social distancing with their children. But, there are also plenty of people in our community, and in the communities we compete against, who don’t. Every weekend, it seems there’s another protest about the right to not wear masks, or to discredit the pandemic as a ‘hoax.’”

When Lorain children come into contact with those who don’t trust the science or practice the recommendations of the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, it puts children and their families at risk, Graham said.

“And at the risk of sounding dramatic, this issue, is for us, truly life or death,” he said.

“I don’t want to ever be in the position where I have to share my condolences with a family of one of our students,” Graham said. “I wouldn’t be able to look them in the eye and say, ‘I didn’t see this coming.’ I can see what’s coming.

“So, I’ll continue to do all I can to keep our kids safe so that they can return to school, in-person, as soon as possible.”