The Oakland Tech Ice Hockey team offers a distinct experience for players, practicing a sport that few high school students can take part in. The team values its great sense of community, despite little acknowledgement from the school.
“It’s definitely unique,” said team captain Zia Cohn, “as we are the only team in the whole Oakland Unified School District.”
Oakland Tech was California’s first public high school to have an ice hockey team. The program was started in 2010 by P.E. teacher Kelley Haskins and firefighter Jim Halpin with the goal of giving OUSD students the opportunity to participate in ice sports. The team works with the City of Oakland to ensure they can practice at the Oakland Ice Center.
Ice hockey is a club sport, which means the Tech team plays against club teams from around the Bay Area, instead of playing against other high schools. Oakland Tech offering club sports makes it possible for students to participate in athletics they might not have the opportunity to otherwise.
The biggest challenge the team faces for the future is recruiting new players. Ice hockey, like many of the club sports at Oakland Tech, sometimes struggles to get the word out about the team. A majority of the students at the school do not ever find out about the club sport opportunities.
“We don’t get that much recognition from the school,” commented Cohn. There have been years where ice hockey schedules have not been sent out in school emails, and ice hockey has often been excluded from the fall sports list. Despite this, Cohn, along with the rest of the team, coaches, and managers are fiercely determined to ensure students will continue to have this opportunity.
“Anyone who wants to join, can join, no matter the experience,” Cohn explained. The team welcomes a range of skill levels, from players who have never skated before to players who have already played hockey or ice skated. The ice hockey team is coed and all grades are able to participate.
Ice hockey is often a sport that is financially inaccessible to many students, with high equipment costs, ice time fees, and registration payments. The Oakland Tech team prides itself on being much more affordable, as players are asked only to pay a registration fee, with financial aid options making the team accessible to anyone who wants to play. In the past, they have fundraised and received grant money to pay for equipment and registration fees.
Cohn highlights the team’s eagerness to make the sport attainable for everyone, emphasizing, “You don’t pay for ice time, you don’t pay for gear, you just have to come.”
For those who are interested in joining, the team has an Instagram account, @techbulldogshockey, and an email address, Oaklandtechicehockey@gmail.com. The team practices twice a week at the Oakland Ice Center, and plays games on Saturdays.