North Hollywood takes pride in its high-achieving sports programs. However, despite the popularity of our athletic programs, not all receive the same treatment–most notably girl sports programs. 

While boy programs spend both the on and off season basking in the glow of a very bright spotlight, female athletes seem to continuously find themselves standing in the wings. 

All student athletes deserve to be recognized for their efforts and their ability to balance academic and extracurricular tasks. Somehow, though, the mentions of female student athletes’ achievements seem to get lost among the North Hollywood student community. Brief recognitions do sometimes occur, such as a passing congratulations on the morning announcements or maybe a few photos posted to the NohoHusky instagram. Oftentimes, however,  girl sports may not even be discussed at all. 

It’s important to give credit when credit is due, and, boy, do the boys get it. Their achievements rarely go as unnoticed as the girls’. Here’s a perfect example. Ask any student or staff member at North Hollywood High School what athletic achievement they’ve heard the most about in the last few weeks? You’ll get the same answer every time; The baseball team winning the Division 1 championship, and getting to play at Dodger Stadium.

This event was the fulfillment of lifelong dreams for these boys, their coaches, and their families. Congratulations are due. But where were they when our girls tennis team won their Los Angeles City Section Division 1 Championship? Or our girls volleyball team getting to the championship last season? Or when softball made it to this year’s playoff semi-finals? Or female athletes from track going to state–even more recently than the baseball game?

Girls softball varsity player Katherine Jurado explains, “I don’t think any of the [North Hollywood] Instagram [accounts] posted [about] the tennis team.”

We are not reaching when we notice this pattern. Girls’ sports aren’t nearly as glorified as boys–and it doesn’t just start in high school, nor does it end there either. 

No matter what age a person is, when they start playing their sport, there is a noticeable difference between the way different genders are encouraged to play. For boys, they’re told to take it seriously from day one. Parents and coaches praise them for their strength and athleticism, assuring them that they can make it to the “big leagues” if they work hard enough. Rarely does a male athlete in high school not fantasize about playing their sport as a career. 

On the other hand, girls find their sports treated more as hobbies than anything else by students, sports administration, and sometimes, even coaches. Girls are seen as playing for “fun” or to make friends. Boys play to go to college, to win scholarships, to go all the way, etc. This perspective affects the way different sports are regarded in high school. 

There isn’t any one person to blame for this. It’s a widespread stereotype. Despite the recent increase of women’s sports media coverage, such as basketball star Caitlyn Clark’s journey to the WNBA, women’s sports have fewer and much less prestigious opportunities to make a career out of their sports. Men’s sports hold onto an audience’s attention much easier. Our boys baseball team can fantasize of the MLB and be supported in trying to reach that goal no matter who they are, whereas our girls’ softball team, despite any level of skill or commitment, will most likely end their careers after high school. If they continue to play in college, playing outside of that as a career is extremely rare. The same thing goes for most other girls sports. 

Career-related discrepancies are not the only ones plaguing the lives of female student athletes–specifically the ones at our school. For the last three years, due to miscommunication, construction, as well as a lack of initiative from administration, girl student athletes found themselves forced to have only one place to change before games, practices, meets, etc; The bathroom. Between having to share this space with the rest of the school and, as a result, having to wait in line for a stall, this option became clearly impractical. 

While certain male teams have designated places to change, such as the football team’s separate locker room and the baseball team’s clubhouse, girls’ sports were left to find their own spaces. 

When administrators discovered this in October of 2023, many told female athletes that they’d provide a solution as soon as possible. However, the busy schedules of our administrators and athletic coordinators led to this issue being on the backburner for quite some time. 

Luckily, for the majority of the spring sports seasons this semester, girls were able to be given access to the PE locker room to change, though the access to the locker room throughout the whole year was both inconsistent and unclear for girl student athletes. 

Jurado comments on the inconvenience of both the restroom’s “makeshift” changing room and then its new alternative, “There were many times where I had to change in a bathroom…[additionally] I was always rushed out of the PE locker room and yelled at repeatedly.

 “[This year], the locker room would either be opened super late or never at all, [so] again I [had] to rush to the nearest bathroom to make sure I would not be late to practice…it was never fair to me that the boys always had a place to change in the locker rooms, but never the girls.” 

There is a chance to turn this lack of support for girl’s athletics at North Hollywood around. There are simple, but important steps that the administration as well as coaches can take to not only support their girl-student athletes, but also promote instances of record setting as well as incredible athletic achievement that takes place every year. 

The athletic achievements that took place this year in girls sports only scratches the surface of the athletic achievement in girls sports that takes place every year at our school. 

When asked how to correct the lack of promotion of these achievements, Husky Elite captain Seven Anthony states, “I feel there should be an increase [in support] to match the support of the boys sports.” 

Anthony clarifies by also stating, “Sometimes boys sports overshadow the girls sports and I feel like the administration should do their best to emphasize equality [in promotion], no matter what.” 

When asked about the same issue of lack of promotion, girls tennis captain Ashlyn Castro also explains, “Overall whether it be on the announcements or social media, girls sports teams do not receive enough audience attraction compared to boys…NHHS has contributed to girls sports, but they could definitely do more.” 

Additionally, students feel that there should be an increase in funding to promote equity in girls athletics at North Hollywood. 

Varsity cheerleader Melene Mendez explains, “The school [needs to] help with funding to help the [girls sports teams] get more equipment and better prepare for their season, [as well as constantly] hire coaches so students can get to participate in girls sports.”

Castro also commented, “with our girls sports teams performing well throughout these past few years, I would expect more funding and supplies going towards these teams to continue this success.”

Varsity volleyball player Jacqueline Puentes shared, “Girl’s volleyball was recognized maybe once on the [North Hollywood] Instagram, and we didn’t have any funding then either. All of our money came out of our coach’s pocket directly or we funded ourselves through selling chocolate.” 

There is a concerning trend of a lack of funds in collegiate sports as well for college women athletes. According to a study done by the NCAA, “women now receive 40% or less of school athletic funding. According to the NCAA as well, “men collegiate athletic programs received more than double that of women’s programs” (NCAA).

Also, according to the NCAA, “[concerns for Title IX] raise when evaluating whether schools are providing equitable opportunities for, and treatment of, male and female athletes, and how they’re spending to achieve those goals.” 

This inequitable pattern needs to stop in high school. If we set standards for equal and supportive support in our girls’ high school sports, our girl athletes will know what standards need to be met in future collegiate opportunities. These standards will be in their minds when they are applying for colleges and researching different sports programs, and therefore our girl student athletes will go into programs that support their achievements, theoretically like their high school did. 

More female students might also be motivated to join sports if they saw the support provided by the school. Some students have shared that they didn’t even know North Hollywood had a softball or girls golf program. Promotion and support directly from our school is what’s necessary to get these neglected programs moving forward. Girl-student athletes are not asking to take over the baseball team’s clubhouse or to have their own locker rooms built, they’re just asking to be provided the same opportunities and encouragement that boys sports programs at North Hollywood receive. 

A more supportive environment from coaches and sports administration, an increase in both monetary and facility resources, and a rise in promotion of North Hollywood’s girl student athletes will not only make our students feel more supported, but it will also inspire other girls to join our sports programs and reap the benefits of being involved in athletics.