WOLFVILLE, N.S. – Acadia University's Department of Athletics revealed today it's fall plan to offer its student body an opportunity to engage in sport and fitness during a COVID-19 altered setting on the Acadia campus.
Referred to as the Alternate Sport Model, the project is a collaboration of several groups on campus to utilize the skills of Acadia Athletics' coaches and student-athletes by offering sport and fitness opportunities to the Acadia campus and Wolfville community.
"We began discussing an alternate sport model in anticipation of Atlantic University Sport canceling the fall season. At first it was around how can our varsity student-athletes compete at the sports they love, but quickly became how we can incorporate all students, club and intramural. Now on behalf of Acadia, we have created a campus "super-league," said Executive Director of Athletics, Kevin Dickie.
"Being a small school where there's such a close integration between our student-athletes and student body, and little separation between students in residence and off campus, these unprecedented times have actually provided an opportunity to make Acadia better," Dickie added.
The Alternate Sport Model will focus on three primary initiatives including sport leagues, expanding health and wellness opportunities and the Sport Academy.
Competitive and recreational sport leagues will be offered that include basketball, volleyball, flag football, soccer, and spikeball. These are a few of the many leagues Acadia Athletics will facilitate for students under the specific provincial sport organization guidelines.
Expanding health and wellness opportunities including Acadia Performance Training will include added fitness offerings to Acadia students, taking advantage of Acadia's beautiful campus space and increase access and interest for health and wellness opportunities on campus.
The Acadia Sport Academy will cover participation from the youth entry level to older athletes interested in high performance.
Axewomen basketball head coach Len Harvey was assigned the task of pulling all the moving parts of the Alternate Sport Model together. "I think it's a way for our Athletic Department at Acadia to be great teammates to both our university and our community and step up to help out areas that were identified as having gaps in service, or where our sport expertise would be of value."
One of the primary groups of interest for the Alternate Sport Model is the Acadia student-body. Being able to provide sport opportunities, as well as health and wellness activities will be a key component in contributing to an engaged, and healthy campus environment when students return amidst new expectations in September.
The Alternative Sport Model will also service the youth of Acadia's local communities, who have largely been without organized sport for the past five months, by providing opportunities to both train and play in a safely monitored environment.
"We will be utilizing members of so many different departments, faculties, and groups at Acadia. It has been a complex undertaking, and a bit of a spiderweb in terms of the level of collaboration and involvement it will generate, which is very positive for our campus. Ultimately, one of our main objectives was to make sure that all of our Acadia students have a place to take care of their physical wellness and create inclusive, safe opportunities for fun, socialization, and fitness," noted Harvey.
Several coaches have been working on the offerings for Acadia students this fall on the Acadia Campus and Kevin Dickie credits the hard work the Athletics staff has done over the last several months that will allow students to experience some normalcy on campus.
"All the credit goes to our staff and coaches, for their commitment to this initiative. Especially Kim Wallace's athletic department leadership, Michelle Wood's annual leadership with our summer camps (and soon Fall and Winter Academies), and finally Len Harvey who has gone above and beyond, managing, leading and being the passion behind our Alternate Sport Model since day one. I can't be more appreciative as an Athletic Director."