Some Students Can't Attend Batavia Football Games Unattended: Reminder

BATAVIA, IL — Some area students are required to be joined at football games by an adult, officials said in a reminder email Thursday.

All elementary and middle school students must be accompanied by a parent or guardian in order to be a football spectator at the high school stadium, a policy that has been in place for many years. Supervisors will monitor students entering the games to make sure the new rule is upheld.

Batavia Public School District 101 staff sent out the alert, citing "behavioral issues" at the Aug. 25 football game. Communications Manager Holly Deitchman said there was no "major incident" that occurred.

"It was just the perfect storm of large groups of kids, short staffing, and [parents] dropping kids off instead of staying to supervise them," Deitchman told Patch in an email.

Officials wanted to make sure students and parents knew of the policy ahead of the Batavia Youth Football game Sept. 1, when they were anticipating even more younger students in attendance, Deitchman said.

"We appreciate your understanding and cooperation in this matter," officials said in a news release. "By working together, we can maintain the camaraderie, sportsmanship, and pride that defines our school community."

Staff recommend spectators buy tickets online in advance, as the school is "extremely short-staffed" and only has a limited number of ticket sellers at games.

Editor's note: This article has been updated to reflect the policy has been in place for several years and was not implemented after the Aug. 25 football game. Patch apologizes for the error.