This article has been updated.

The permit to use the WHS turf in the annual powderpuff game, has reportedly been canceled. The game is being carried out as a non-school sanctioned event, as administration recently upheld their 2021 decision to not sponsor it. Until recently, the game was set to take place at the Wayland High School turf. However, the individuals that booked the field have revoked their reservation.

Student Council President Delia Caulfield and parent volunteers obtained a reservation through Wayland-Weston Youth Football, a community organization authorized to rent the field.

“We couldn’t book it through the school, so we did it through a community organization,” Caulfield said

However, this changed when the field permit was canceled, allegedly by the organization that booked it in the first place.

“To my knowledge, this was because members of administration expressed their concerns, which led to this organization canceling their reservation,” student council President Delia Caulfield said.

In an email to parents of Wayland and Weston seniors sent on November 18, Principal Dr. Allyson Mizoguchi and Weston Principal Paul Peri cited their concerns about the game, alleging that it is unsafe, demeaning to women and creates an aggressive rivalry between the towns.

“We do not believe this event fuels a healthy relationship between our schools,” Peri and Mizoguchi said.

In response, senior Austin Russell has created an online petition, calling for administration to reinstate the field permit. The petition has about 500 signatures, and has been posted on social media by various seniors.

“No one’s really hearing us out, and [administration] is just trying to take more away from us,” senior player Ashley Rice said.

It remains unclear where the game will take place.

“We don’t have any other field, but regardless of that, we are continuing to look into other options,” Caulfield said.