The state’s governing body for high school sports has denied a request from the president of its board of directors to publicly broadcast a meeting next week that is expected to determine the fate of fall sports amidst the coronavirus pandemic.

Board president Lauren Otero emailed the Florida High School Athletic Association on Thursday morning to request that the board’s Aug. 14 meeting be streamed on YouTube, as the last two virtual meetings were. Broadcasting the session would allow people across the state to see the discussions and ultimate decision about how football and the other fall sports will take place this fall.

“Our Board is faced with making a decision with such impacting gravity that I believe no prior board has had to make,” wrote Otero, the athletic director at Plant High. “To shut the public out of this meeting, when our two prior Board meetings drew an attendance of 4000-5000 viewers, I find this unacceptable. With a maximum attendance of 50 people permitted to attend in person, the public deserves to hear our discussion….

“As the president of the Board of Directors, I am respectfully requesting you to make the necessary arrangements to broadcast this critical meeting via YouTube in the same manner the previous two Board meetings were broadcast.”

Otero received a brief response from the association’s executive director, George Tomyn: “The August 14, 2020 FHSAA Board of Directors meeting is not going to be broadcast via YouTube.”

In announcing the meeting on its website Friday, the governing body wrote that space for the meeting in Gainesville “will be limited and maximum capacity will be strictly enforced” under health guidelines. Alachua County guidelines restrict public gatherings to 50 people. Public input can be sent via email (questions@fhsaa.org) or delivered in person following an on-site signup before the meeting.

Otero said Friday afternoon that she was disappointed by the association’s decision to not air the meeting for those who cannot attend, either because of the drive or because of limited capacity.

“I think that’s a disservice to our membership,” Otero said. “I think it’s a disservice to the student-athletes, to the parents, to the coaches, to the athletic directors that are really impacted by this decision…

“Obviously people want to know what’s going on. That’s why it’s disappointing, to me, when we know how much people are sitting on pins and needles waiting for this decision to be made, why we’re not affording them the opportunity to hear it.”

A Florida High School Athletic Association spokesperson did not immediately return a request for comment.