TAMPA, Fla. — It's been one year since incoming freshman Hezekiah Walters died during conditioning drills, and now Hillsborough County Public Schools is naming its new training protocols after him.
The training will be required for all coaches and athletes and will help make sure all student-athletes know the dangers of heat-related illnesses.
School board members adopted a policy following Walter's death to make sure all school-sponsored sports and extracurricular activities have established procedures surrounding the health and safety of students. It includes activities like band, ROTC and athletic programs.
The new protocols will also hold staff and administration accountable for following the set guidelines, which include proper hydration, length of practices and access to cool areas.
Additional safety protocols initiated by the district include:
- All football staff will be certified in Heads Up Football training by the 2020-21 school year
- All high schools have been provided at least one cold immersion tub for heat-related emergencies
- Our district will continue its commitment to having certified athletic trainers on all high school campuses
- Required training through the Positive Coaching Alliance to continue instilling a positive culture both on and off the field
- Due to COVID-19, conditioning and practices will be limited to 20 people including coaches, which will allow for enhanced student monitoring
Hillsborough County Schools voted Tuesday to approve a $1 million settlement to the family of Hezekiah Walters.
Then-Superintendent Jeff Eakins said an investigation by Hillsborough County Schools found many protocols weren't being followed prior to Walters' death. Eakins said the district found Walters' student-athlete clearance forms had not been completed when conditioning began. Part of the paperwork included watching required safety videos, including one on heatstroke.
According to Eakins, coaches did not follow protocols because several other students hadn't finished their required paperwork either. At the end of July 2019, the district demoted and transferred Middleton High School's assistant principal and transferred the head coach, who they said would no longer be a coach either.
Last year, Hezekiah Walters' family demanded the district make changes in the wake of his death. The family wanted to see an athletic trainer in all schools and also wanted all coaches and staff to follow the appropriate protocols for student-athletes. Additionally, staff that is supposed to be in place during conditioning need to be present.
In August 2019, the school board unanimously voted to add more year-round athletic trainers in the county's high schools.
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