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They may be wearing baseball caps and T-shirts, but these Sweetwater Valley Little Leaguers are doing homework while preparing for their world series games.
(Little League)
SOUTH WILLIAMSPORT - The Californians are going to school while they prepare to play in the Little League World Series.
Eleven of the 13 seventh and eighth graders on the Sweetwater Valley team from Bonita are connected to their school using Ipads and the Little League's wi-fi system.
"Our school is year round so our school started July 23," manager Arturo Maldonado explained. "This is our third week off. We still have to do our school work here. We have to have time set aside for us to do our school work."
Surprisingly the players are not complaining. "School is first," said Dante Schmid. "You need grades to succeed in sports."
"If you don't do your homework in school you may not pass," said Antonio Andrade. He does homework after each game, he said.
They all filled out a contract with the Sweetwater Unified School District promising they would get their school work done while at the same time trying to win the world championship, Maldonado said.
The school system gave the boys iPads so they receive and send their schoolwork, he said. Tuesday, the players spent close to two hours in a room provided by Little League doing their school work.
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"They have to get their school work done", he said. "We emphasize that," he said. We make sure of that. We want to make sure that school is the first emphasis. If they are not doing well in school, it is pretty hard to play the game."
The coaching staff tries to set aside up to two hours every day for the boys to do their school work, Maldonado said. That has been difficult since arriving at the series because their schedule has been so hectic, he said.
Quiet time is set aside in the dorm but there is no Wi-Fi system there, he said. Some have more school work than others, he said.
"They're pretty good about it," the manager said. "Hey coach, we need time to do our homework, we got to get our reading done," he said they tell him.
"They're 12 and 13 years old, they know they have to get their school work done."
They do not have to worry about tests or quizzes because the district agreed to delay them until they are physically back in school, he said.
The homework requirement is to prevent the players from falling too far behind in their school work, Maldonado explained. Those parents who arrived Tuesday night brought homework with them, he said.
At the time all-stars were selected school was on summer break, he said. "They knew once they started school again it was back to business and doing their homework."
School work is not the only off-field issue for the Californians. Dugout coach Jaime Ramirez was advised by an email earlier this week he will not have a job when he returns home.
He has gotten a half dozen job offers since that became public, Maldonado said.