This year, nearly 50 boys were turned away from the Kingston City School’s boys middle school "modified" soccer team due to limited spots, with 77 seventh- and eighth-grade boys trying out.

During the public comment portion of the Sept. 23 school board meeting, parents asked for the district to include two modified teams next school year so that more students could participate. Christina Kryzwonus, the parent of an eighth-grader, complimented the “tremendous growth” of the program while also saying “there’s a gap in how we accommodate and foster this growth.”

Kryzwonus said that the modified football program has two squads, and other sports in the district have made similar moves to accommodate all who wish to play.

“Turning away nearly 50 middle school boys and potentially discouraging them from participating in a school sport at such a young age is not something anyone wants to see,” Kryzwonus said. “Soccer specifically is extraordinary in its ability to bring together uniquely diverse groups.”

Another parent of a soccer player at Kingston and a volunteer youth soccer coach, Nelson Vasquez, also supported the call for two modified teams.

“I know from coaching, the developmental approach to soccer is best, and seventh- and eighth-graders are not yet finished developing their minds, their bodies, or their soccer skills,” Vasquez said. “The second is that for so many of our young people, soccer is life. They want to play as much as possible, and our community should provide them as many opportunities as possible to engage in such a healthy activity.”

School board President Marc Rider asked about the process for getting a second modified soccer team. KCSD Superintendent Paul Padalino, said he thinks “there's a reality looking at having two soccer teams,” noting that creating a second team would cost less than transporting students to other districts to play. Padalino said they would look at current enrollment trends and sports participation to evaluate the feasibility of a second team for next year.