Building on a journey that started years ago, the advocacy of young female Marin County athletes and community members for equal opportunity in sports has resulted in the recent kickoff of the first official season of girls’ varsity flag football in Redwood history.
The team was not introduced to the athletics department overnight. The idea of a girls’ flag football team was proposed many years before its establishment, with no success.
New assistant coach and offensive coordinator Kama Kaleikini was a part of the early process that began the battle for the new team.
“Starting this program has been in the talks for a while since I graduated; we tried to get it started up when I was in high school back in 2018 and 2019, but that fell through,” Kaleikini said.
The discussion of flag football re-emerged as a pressing issue among students and community members during school board meetings at the end of the last school year. Senior captain Gia Meyers, along with many other current players, made appearances in meetings in order to speak their mind.
(curtesy of Dana Long)
“[Community members and students] were very passionate about why we should have flag football this year, so the tensions were pretty high [in the board room],” Meyers said.
Title IX, established in 1972, is a federal law that requires public high schools to provide equal opportunities for both female and male student athletes. During board meetings, Title IX was brought up several times because of the idea that having a boys’ football team and not a girls’ team is discriminatory.
While students and members of the district community led the efforts in advocating for the team, Principal Dr. Barnaby Payne played a large role in the board meetings that initially occurred before the team became official.
“[A member of the Terra Linda high school community] made public comments, demanding that we, the district, add flag football and talking about Title IX,” Payne said.
When the opportunity presented itself late into the summer, both head coach Tyrone Robinson and Kaleikini were quick to step up. Despite being informed just a month before the season started, they embraced the challenge of assembling a team by Aug. 11. For Robinson, also the Dean of Students, it was more than just a coaching opportunity; it was a chance to further the community around Redwood athletics.
“[Through] my background as a counselor, I really take a lot of pride in trying to create a positive environment for young people to thrive in,” Robinson said.
One of Robinson’s main goals for the season is to give the players a good experience and make them want to return. Even with a four-loss start, the team’s energy remained high, with players and parents showing their passion from start to finish.
Meyers stated that as the season has progressed and the team has had more time to practice together, players have developed a better understanding of the sport and grown closer together as a team. She hopes to see the program develop over the next few years, even after she graduates.
Although the players have come from different grades and friend groups, as the season has progressed they have become undoubtedly close-knit.
“There were no cuts on the team… so it has been a way to meet new people and find a passion for something that girls don’t really get an opportunity for,” Meyers said.
Most of the team is relatively new to flag football, which has given more experienced players the chance to step into leadership roles.
“[Some of the players] know a lot because of the Marin Heat [local club flag football team], and it made my job easier; it also makes it easier on the team because it gives new players someone to look up to,” Robinson said.
As flag football continues to grow more popular for student athletes, Payne predicts that someday a junior varsity and freshman team will be needed. Not only will the number of students interested in participating increase, but the community created will have lasting effects.
“[Redwood] students are really interested in sports,” Payne said. “Sports build community. Sports create positive relationships with adults. Sports give students focus.”
As a result of community advocacy and pressure on the district to ensure gender equality, the school board approved the team to begin as a new fall sports team.
