FISHERS, Ind — Amid safety concerns, one Hamilton County school district is changing its policy for youth attending high school sporting events.
Parents whose kids are part of Hamilton Southeastern Schools got an email Tuesday about new steps the district is taking to keep the events safe.
While the new school year is just underway, a district spokesperson said they’ve been looking at making the change for a while.
It’s happening now, the spokesperson said, because they’ve seen unruly behavior at some of the varsity football games, mainly involving junior high school-aged kids running around and throwing things from the stands.
From now on, students in grades kindergarten through eighth grade must have an adult with them to attend high school sporting events for Hamilton Southeastern Schools.
“I do think a lot of junior high kids get dropped off by mom and dad,” said parent Cathi White, who learned of the change Tuesday.
White said she is talking about football games more than other varsity sporting events.
“There are some younger kids running around, and I think that’s even if their parents are there sometimes,” White said.
Incidents like those led the district to put the new policy in place.
“Our neighboring districts have something similar in effect or exact, so it’s nothing new," said Jimmi Lake, the district’s chief operations officer. "We’re just looking for support from our community.”
Lake said if a junior high-aged or younger student shows up at high school sporting event without adult supervision, “We will help them or look to help obtain their parent, or contact their parent and explain what’s going on.”
For anyone who missed the new policy announcement, it will appear on electronic tickets for district varsity sporting events.
The policy takes effect immediately, just in time for Hamilton Southeastern's varsity football game Friday against Avon.