The following letter was sent out by the American Rivers Conference on Friday:
The Presidents Council of
the American Rivers Conference today announced its intention to
conduct intercollegiate athletics programs this fall and for the
entirety of the 2020-21 academic year. The announcement coincided
with the conference’s spring governance cycle, which began yesterday
with virtual meetings of the conference’s athletics administrators
and faculty athletics representatives. The Presidents Council’s
spring meeting will take place Wednesday, May 27, 2020.
“We
will be using our spring meetings to coordinate our approach to full
conference competition, both for the regular season and our
post-season tournaments,” said Chuck Yrigoyen, Commissioner of
the American Rivers Conference. “As with our campuses generally,
safety is our primary goal as we provide a robust, competitive
experience for our student-athletes, coaches, athletics staff,
officials, fans, and everyone directly involved in A-R-C
sports.”
A-R-C institutions plan to approach all
scheduled non-conference contests with the same attention to health
and well-being as conference play. “Our athletics community
knows our level of commitment to athletics has always been extremely
high,” Yrigoyen continued. “We are in full preparation mode
on behalf of that community and look forward to the day we welcome
everyone back. We urge everyone to practice all known mitigation
steps in your daily lives as we move forward against the
virus.”
State and local guidelines will be primary
considerations for the conference’s nine schools as the summer leads
into preseason practice and then into competition. The conference
also is engaging medical professionals on each campus — most
notably the schools’ certified athletic trainers — as protocols are
developed for their own teams and for visiting teams.
Further
announcements regarding American Rivers Conference athletics for
2020-21 shall be released as warranted.