Lower Merion, Harriton parents aren’t giving up on football merger issue

During a Dec. 15 school board meeting, the superintendent’s decision not to merge the Lower Merion and Harriton high school football teams wasn’t on the agenda. However, the issue still loomed large.

Lower Merion School Board President Kerry Sautner acknowledged at the beginning of the meeting that the board received emails asking that the topic be an official part of the meeting. But she also stated that Superintendent Frank Ranelli “has made the best recommendation for the time being” regarding the proposed merger.

“Given the alignment that we have, the transitions of the board and the timing and the requirements of the PIAA, the majority of the board supports him in moving that decision forward,” Sautner said. She also thanked parents, students and alumni for their copious feedback on the issue — which included a slew of impassioned appeals during a Nov. 17 school board meeting — but said the board wants to examine the issue more closely over the next 18 months.

A group of parents in the school district have been pushing to combine the Harriton and Lower Merion football programs, which both have struggled with low participation and are overmatched in the Central League. Proponents of the merger argue that young, underdeveloped players are often being forced to play on varsity too soon, resulting in frequent injuries and low morale.

Ranelli during the November board meeting said he was recommending against the merger, citing concerns about tradition, school pride and the teams’ ability to participate in the playoffs. The matter was not voted on by the school board, but public commenters at the Dec. 15 meeting urged the board members to consider doing so.

“I was surprised by last month’s unilateral decision on this topic,” Narberth resident Chris McLeod said. He argued that the decision does not align with what the district’s own survey showed was students’ and parents’ preference. “Some comments from the district staff on social media and the interpretation of the results all appear to have an element of bias,” McLeod contended.

Matai Mistry, a junior at Harriton high school, said that while he was grateful to be able to play at the varsity level during his freshman year, “I was physically overmatched due to a lack of proper lifting and training.” He also had to play on both sides of the ball during his sophomore year and dealt with hamstring pulls and knee issues. This year, he added, he sprained his MCL and then his LCL in another knee, but he had to continue playing due to lack of depth on the roster.

“A merger would allow us to establish a stronger and healthier football culture where freshmen are not rushed onto varsity fields or relied on as primary backups,” Mistry said.

Rahul Mistry, who has organized parents pushing for the merger, called the board’s 18-month moratorium on voting on the issue “self-inflicted.” He said he and other parents spoke to the PIAA District 1 director, who told them that “you can still do this; get your board to vote on it.”

“So I urge you — what are you going to do [in] the next 18 months?” Mistry said. “Let’s get this thing done; let’s at least vote on it. If you vote no, it’s over. If you vote yes, we can move forward.”