Why You Should Attend Local High School Sports Events

The average cost of a Chicago Bears ticket is about $125.00. The average price for a Chicago Cubs or White Sox ticket is nearly $60.00. A Bulls ticket? About $100.00. These prices don’t include parking and concessions (a $10 coke anyone?); nor do they include time spent fighting traffic getting to and from the games.

But you don’t have to travel an hour and take out a loan to watch a sporting event – Oak Forest High School provides low cost (for most events free) entertainment options minutes from your home. The price for a basketball Game? $5.00. Soccer game? Free. Baseball game? Free. There is no cost to park. Concessions are $1.00 for a pop. $3.00 for a slice of pizza. Entertainment at halftime? Cheerleaders, dance and pom squads. The student section will also keep you entertained throughout the games with their cheers and jeers.

Besides the costs, there are other great reasons to attend events and activities at your local high school.

1. You are part owner and there are benefits to helping your team/ high school improve.

In Cook County, approximately 50-60% of property taxes levied go to fund public schools. This makes you a part owner! So pretend you are Jerry Reinsdorf, Tom Rickets, or Virginia McCaskey and grab a front row seat and cheer on your team. And just like an owner of a professional sports team, there are financial benefits to you if your high school team does well.

There are numerous studies that show that students who compete in high school activity programs have better educational outcomes, including higher grades, higher achievement test scores, and higher educational expectations beyond high school. There are many other benefits to student participation in high school activities including:

• Enhanced school engagement and sense of belonging,
• Positive life skills,
• Healthier behaviors, and
• Development of better citizens in the community.

Students performing better academically improve the over-all academic performance of the school. In addition, students who are better citizens help to improve the community. A recent study by the Brookings Institute found that housing costs tend to be higher in areas where high-scoring schools are located. The study, which looked at the 100 largest metro areas in the country, found an average difference of $205,000 in home prices between houses near high-performing and low-performing schools.

So, from a strictly financial perspective – not only are you saving money by cheering on your local high school teams versus attending a pro game, but you are also helping to increase your home value just by cheering and supporting your local high school’s sports program!

2. You can relate.

Not many fans at a professional game can relate to a professional athlete in peak physical condition making millions of dollars. But most fans can relate to a high school athlete that they are watching. You know the fears, doubts, excitement and emotions that they are feeling because you were them - once upon a time.

Although we may play Monday morning quarterback, most of us have never actually played a sport at the professional level, but you were 16 years old once. If you want to relive the glory days, you can compare yourself to the high school athlete on the court or field. You might be surprised at how much bigger, faster and stronger the kids are today compared to your time. Or maybe bring your family and regale them with the stories of how you scored four touchdowns in a high school game - just like Al Bundy.

3. These are your neighbors.

You probably know some of the players or their families since all of the players on the court or field are from your community. Your attendance at a local high school game is helping to build a sense of community. Attending high school games is a great way to catch up with friends and to meet new ones in the community.

If you have younger kids, they will enjoy watching a game. Elementary and junior high students look up to the high school athletes. The quality of play will far exceed anything that they experience in their youth games. Not only will they enjoy the excitement of watching the game, they will likely learn something by watching the high school athletes play.

Take pictures of your younger kids on the court or field after the game or with the high school logo in the background and keep them for when they grow up in a few years and they are playing on that same court or field. In addition to having some pretty cool pictures to share with them when they are in high school, this gives kids something to aspire to and builds a respect and appreciation for the high school that they will carry with them. This sense of pride in their school will likely translate into better athletic and academic performance when they get to high school themselves.

4. Your attendance makes a difference

Less than 7% of high school athletes go on to play a sport in college and less than 2% of high school athletes go on to play at NCAA Division I schools. Some of the best players on the field or court might be playing for a shot to play in college or even the pros one day, but the overwhelming majority are playing for the pure love of the game. They may not realize it, but the sad truth is that high school will likely be the last time that they will play the sport that they grew up playing since they were five or six years old. Your cheer may be one of the last ones that they ever here for them on a field or court.

A high school player recognizes and appreciates every single fan that comes out to watch them play. The student-athletes can feel the difference when people are in the stands. Your simple presence at their game makes a difference in their lives by giving them recognition of the work that they put into practices and the sacrifices that they make.

Upcoming Oak Forest High School Games are shown weekly on patch.com under Local News/ Sports or can be found on Oak Forest High School's webpage at https://il.8to18.com/oakforest...