news-record.com

Stripping Northern Guilford High of its 3-A state basketball crown is a bitter pill for the new school to swallow. But the message must resonate throughout the entire system that the end doesn’t justify the means.

The N.C. High School Athletic Association took back the Nighthawks’ title a day after Guilford County Schools ruled that the team used two players who should not have been attending the school.

Additionally, the ongoing investigation found that ineligible students played more than one sport. Also affected are the school’s wrestling and baseball teams and junior varsity softball team.

Basketball coach Stan Kowalewski’s contract won’t be renewed and the school must pay a $1,250 fine to the high school association and return more than $7,800 in playoff revenue — tough sanctions for a school that made history by being the first county high school to win a state basketball title without a senior on the roster. But it’s a fair punishment, considering the shameful and embarrassing behavior of trusted school leaders who should have known better.

In April, the school’s principal, Joe Yeager, and Athletics Director Derrell Force resigned. Superintendent Maurice “Mo” Green correctly concluded that school staff should have caught the eligibility discrepancies.

For too long, school districts have either turned a blind eye to such shenanigans or openly condoned them. Similar violations were rampant in the Charlotte-Mecklenburg system when Green was there. To his credit, he has acted forcefully in addressing the problem both there and here.

Some Northern parents and students say they were poorly informed about a probe that lingered way too long. Green has moved to blunt such criticism in the future by proposing public meetings to address residency policies. That should help.

The last chapter in this sordid saga has yet to be written. It may well end up as a messy courtroom fight. Nevertheless, it behooves the adults, no matter how angry, to act responsibly and set good examples for the students. After all, it’s about them.

For starters, players and their parents should ignore Kowalewski’s recommendation that his players not play basketball in Guilford County as long as Green is superintendent. Pouting on the sidelines proves nothing.

Rather, the administration, parents, students and faculty ought to come together for a fresh start. Playing by the rules isn’t that difficult.

If Green is to achieve that fresh start for athletics in county schools, he must move expeditiously and impartially. Ignoring residency rules is no different from cheating during the game.