This year, sixty students participate in cross country at Clayton High School. This is the largest the team has ever been. Across the board, involvement at CHS has increased drastically. More students than in years past are participating in school-sponsored events.

With this increase in participation comes a rise in school spirit. So far this year, student support at home games has increased noticeably. This is conducive to a positive school environment in which students are supportive of each other.

Studies at Bowdoin College have proven that participation in sports is directly linked with higher self esteem in students as well as their peers. This sense of higher self-esteem helps carry individuals into their life with a better attitude and a greater sense of self-worth.

One of the factors explaining the high numbers of participation in sports at CHS is the no cut policy. This principle allows anyone who wants to participate in sports to be able to do so. Bob Bone, the athletic director at CHS places a strong emphasis on athletics in the life of the typical CHS student.

“Number one, we have almost a culture of participation not just in athletics, but in all of our activities, and I think the no cut policy makes it a lot less stressful to go out for a team,” he said. “You don’t have to worry that your name will be put on a list and you’ll be told not to come back after the first week of practice.”

Although some serious athletes may feel strongly that the no cut policy is not the best way to form winning teams, it contributes to the uniquely high involvement of CHS students.

“Education you get at Clayton is not just what you learn in the classroom, but I think it’s the overall education of the whole person,” Bone said. “We think that you learn things through athletics that you can’t learn any place else so without that participation then educating the whole person is not quite complete.”