By Kevin Mills,Staff Writer

ORONO – Sign language is what Sports Done Right hopes will take its cause to the next level.

Armed with approved compacts, the 12 Maine pilot schools now have a tool with which communities can use the power of the pen to deliver the SDR message.

“When they start handing out stuff for people to sign, I think people are going to start to realize that it’s about students again,” said Poland sophomore Paige Piper. “It says it, and people are going to be reminded.”

The compacts are designed to put the core principals of Sports Done Right into action. There is a community compact for school boards and a compact for athletes, parents and coaches.

The compacts are part of the adoption phase of the University of Maine initiative. Pilot sites will present these compacts to respective school boards for approval. That would allow for pilot sites to apply for candidacy and then earn acceptance as official Sports Done Right schools.

“This is what is the most important thing to me as an educator,” said Paul Vachon, girls’ basketball coach at Cony, holding up a compact at the final training session for pilot sites in Orono last week. “How can a school board say No’ to this? I don’t think there is one person that can say No’ to this. If they do, they don’t know much about the educational process.”

Piper served on a student panel in Orono. One of the topics the athletes discussed was the higher standard that the compacts set for athletes. Though many agreed all students should be held to such expectations, it can be especially important for athletes.

“All athletes are role models for everyone at school,” said Lewiston senior Luke Potter. “Their representatives of their school as they travel to other places and while they’re there. And as teammates, you have a responsibility to teammates to be responsible outside of school. As far as signing the compacts, we all do it together. We’re promising to each other that we’re going to work hard together, and I think that leads to a positive result.”

Breaking those contracts, on the other hand, doesn’t just reflect poorly on the guilty student.

“When athletes abuse those compacts that they sign, it’s a reflection of the entire community,” said Edward Little junior Brittney French.

The compacts provide clear-cut standards that follow the direction for a better sports environment. Having concise guidelines presented in this form makes it easier for people to understand what is expected.

“It helps to put it out on paper,” said Lewiston junior Chantel McLellen. “People have no idea, but just seeing it and knowing more about it, too, they start to understand it more.”

The compacts were the subject of debate at December’s training session. It was decided that standard compacts could be localized by communities, pending approval by the MCSC, was the best choice and true to the original intent.

“We’re actually going to use exactly what we’ve got,” said Lewiston assistant principal Paul Amnott. “It addresses everything that we want to address with our school board, with our parents, with our student athletes.”

At Poland, athletic director Don King says his leadership team will discuss any local terms to be added, but expects to stick closely to the SDR model.

Amnott says the Lewiston-Auburn group would like to get a workshop scheduled for the school boards of both communities. A presentation would follow to the individual boards in the spring. They’ve also got a meeting scheduled March 13 with the local recreation programs.

King is also looking toward the end of the school year. He’d like to host another public forum, even set up a panel discussion.

“I’d really like to do more public information and give them a chance to ask questions,” said King.