The Oak Knoll Volleyball and Basketball teams play in the Menlo Park Recreation (Burgess) League competing against other area schools. The League is run by Burgess. The games are played at Burgess and officiated by Burgess referees. Starting at the fifth grade level, for basketball teams, Burgess has playoff competitions and provides trophies to the top winners. At the lower grades, there are no playoffs and Burgess provides t-shirts to the participants. (Volleyball playoffs do not begin until 6th grade.) Since the league is run by Burgess, any trophies for the teams should by awarded by Burgess.
The After School Sport program will not give trophies for participating in the program. Likewise, the coaches are not permitted to give trophies. We want consistency among the teams and it would be unfair for some teams to be given trophies simply for participating while other teams do not get them.
While we want to encourage the students to play on the Oak Knoll teams, to develop the fundamental skills of the sport, to learn the game and have fun, at the same time the students need to realize that not every team or individual gets a trophy. From a developmental perspective, we want to help the students learn that they may play their best and try their hardest, and their coaches may recognize their efforts, but they will not receive an award for simply participating.