NEAC Remains Firm on Spectator Policy
LATHAM, N.Y. - Following their April meeting, the North Eastern Athletic Conference (NEAC) Presidents' Council has determined that spectators will remain prohibited from athletic competition for the remainder of the spring semester. This policy will remain in place for all NEAC postseason contests.
"We understand the disappointment and frustration from our student-athletes' families, friends and supporters," shared NEAC Commissioner Stephanie Dutton. "It is the dedication of those who support our teams that bring additional energy to our competitive environment and we continue to miss that aspect of athletics. That said, the NEAC Presidents' Council is still faced with various restrictions on many of our member campuses and our current spectator policy continues to align with the restrictions across many aspects of student life programming at this time."
Intercollegiate competition brings spectators to a campus from various communities and potentially from other states. Given the geographic reach of where attendees can be traveling from, this elevates the risk of COVID transmission to a higher rate than that of attendance at youth or high school competitions, which are typically confined to a local community. Intercollegiate athletic teams are also part of a larger residential community on their campuses that often includes shared living space with various members of the student population, which differs from that of youth and high school athletics.
It also continues to be noted by the NEAC Presidents' Council that intercollegiate athletics remains just one aspect of student life on our member campuses. Many programs that range from academics to the arts continue to also have restrictions on attendees from outside a campus community.
"The primary goal of our college campuses is to complete the spring academic semester in residence," added Dutton. "From an athletics perspective, it has also taken an enormous effort at all of our campuses to facilitate spring sports competition in this environment. We need to remain focused on doing everything we can to mitigate risks and keep our teams on the field to have a chance to compete for a NEAC Championship in the coming weeks."
The NEAC will work with its host institutions to provide live stats and live streaming of upcoming postseason events where available.
Following the conclusion of the spring season, the NEAC Presidents' Council will begin reviewing any updated NCAA guidance for fall competition.
