The questions have been swirling around social media for months:

Would you feel safe sending your child back to school?

Would you allow your child to participate in sports?

As the father of a 16-year-old daughter who runs cross country, those aren’t hypothetical questions. Our family has to come up with those answers, weighing facts against fear during the coronavirus pandemic.

Based on statistics from the Center for Disease Control and Pennsylvania Department of Health, the risk seems minimal for high school students. Nationwide 92 children 18 and younger have died from COVID-19. In Pennsylvania, according to a spokesperson for the Department of Health, as of Friday that number was zero.

During the H1N1 outbreak in 2009, an estimated 1,090 children under 18 in America died from the flu. That means a child had nearly a 12 times greater chance of dying from H1N1 than COVID-19. During that time schools were open and no basketball tournaments, swimming championships or spring sports seasons were canceled.

But school isn’t only about the children. There are adult teachers and support staff who are more at risk to the virus than children.

But state Department of Health statistics show that 87% of the 7,558 deaths attributed to COVID-19 as of a Friday report are in people 65 and older, hardly the demographic you’ll find at your local elementary or high school.

The negative effects of not sending a child to school and allowing him or her to participate in sports also must be considered. CDC director Robert Redfield revealed in an interview that drug overdoses and suicides are on the rise because of teenagers being isolated.

Some may argue that overdoses and suicides aren’t contagious.

As teachers who have passed mandatory suicide prevention courses know, that is totally untrue. In addition, it sounds a bit insensitive in regards to the mental burdens children have endured for the past five months.

Others may argue against children returning to school and sports because  their own health issues put them at risk.

It’s somewhat ironic that the same kids who have been stocking the shelves at your grocery store, serving you fast food and working as lifeguards so families can safely spend a day at the community pool may not be able to attend school in person or participate in sports.

In a long overdue victory for the kids, the PIAA on Friday voted to allow fall sports to move forward with practices for non-contact sports beginning on Monday. Football, soccer, field hockey and water polo and girls volleyball will follow.

That leaves the decision about whether to participate in sports up to each school district, the parents and the athletes.

Thanks to safety protocols put in place by each school, the short answer is yes, I feel safe with my daughter going back to school and participating in sports.

I’m glad you asked.