What are sports classes? Many students have probably heard of their teams making the “Class C Championship.” Sports classes are divisions that are based on school size. Ranking from AAA to D, these classes are assigned to schools by the NYSPHSAA, the New York State Public High School Athletic Association, based on how many students they have enrolled. AAA is designated for the state’s biggest schools, and Class D is the smallest schools. The 100 biggest schools are in AAA, while the 100 smallest schools are in D. The rest of the schools in the state are evenly divided into each of the other classes.
Recently, the sports class discussion has been a hot topic, as Haldane is moving to Class B next year. An evaluation recently happened, and Haldane has 6 students over the maximum for Class C, forcing the school to move to Class B. This will create a big change for almost every team, as most Haldane sports have historically competed in Class C or D. Bigger schools usually mean higher levels of competition, so Haldane sports will likely have new and tougher competition in sectionals for the years to come.
The assistant coach on the Haldane Boys Soccer Team, Ramsey Heitmann, said he looks forward to the change. He noted, “The increased level of competition should be a fun change, and a good new experience after playing the same teams year after year.”
Some teams, however, will not be affected by this change.
Varsity Boys Basketball already played in Class B in the 2024-2025 season and will continue to play in Class B this year. When asked about how he feels about playing in Class B, Ryder Griffin, a senior on the team, said, “Haldane is a great athletic school, and we can keep up with a school of any size.” This positive attitude is common at Haldane, as sports teams have historically overcome adversity as a smaller school in athletics, frequently matched against much larger schools.
Haldane Football is another example of a team that won’t be affected by the class change, as it will continue to be Class D, and since Tuckahoe is the only other Class D school in Haldane’s section, they play every year for the sectional title.
Classes are arguably most important during playoffs. While regular-season play often includes matchups between schools of differing class levels, Haldane will only face off against teams in their class during playoffs to keep the matchups fair. If a team from Haldane wins its Sectional Championship, it will advance into the state play-offs. Next year, most of these post-season games will see Haldane competing against Class B schools.
So next year, almost all Haldane teams will be affected by this change, while Football and Boys Basketball will be unaffected by the move to Class B. Though most of the Haldane teams will experience enhanced challenges in the higher levels, how long they will be asked to compete at this heightened level remains to be seen. With lower enrollment numbers likely in the future, many of Haldane’s teams may drop back down to the smaller classes.
