The Saline Reporter
A Heritage Newspaper
Weekly Publication
Fee increase saves SMS teams
Eight second teams will be offered in 2007-2008 barring 'worst-case scenario'
By Jerry Hinnen, Staff Writer
PUBLISHED: March 8, 2007
Despite the Saline Area Schools budget crunch and a lack of support from the general fund, Saline Middle School will continue to offer second teams in seventh- and eighth-grade boys' basketball, volleyball and football in the 2007-2008 school year.
Advertisement
Preserving the eight teams will come at a cost to Saline parents, however, as the pay-to-participate fee for middle school sports will double from $50 to approximately $100.
Saline Athletic Director Rob White acknowledged that the fee hike was less than optimal, but added that it was necessary to continue providing as many participation opportunities for middle school students as possible.
"Our kids have such a positive experience in sports, and we want to give that experience to as many kids as we can," White said. "It's all about participation. Especially at the middle school level, participation is critical."
For reasons ranging from the lessons in teamwork and responsibility to deeper –– and better –– Saline varsity teams down the road, White said, the Saline community agreed that the second middle school teams were too important to lose.
Saline Area Schools Superintendent Beverley Geltner had considered dissolving the teams in the face of deeper-than-expected budget cuts. But after discussing the issue with Saline coaches and parents, White met with Geltner and proposed an alternative funding plan that will preserve the full middle school athletics program.
"I was very pleased by how the community responded," White said. "I think that Dr. Geltner maybe has a better understanding, or fully appreciates, how much our community values our athletic programs. They're one of the things that gives our community its identity."
"I am pleased with the proposal Mr. White presented to maintain second teams at the middle school," Geltner said in a March 1 public statement. "We want as many students as possible to participate in inter-scholastic sports. This proposal maintains opportunities for students without overburdening parents or requiring further cuts to programs and services in the general fund."
The key element in the proposal is the increase in pay-to-participate fees. White said his discussions with parents indicated that, "comparatively speaking," the $50 fee was low. For that reason, and the scholarship program available for families for whom this would be a hardship, White did not expect the fee increase to hurt the program's participation levels.
"I really don't think there will be much impact," he said. "Parents pay so much with clubs and travel and equipment that, relatively speaking, this isn't that big of an increase … We don't want this be a deterrent."
The cost could become a larger issue, however, if the final fee rises too far above the $100 mark. Geltner said the fee would not be finalized until concrete budget figures were available.
"The state has not yet determined what funding Saline will receive for the current school year, let alone next year," she said. "We are currently developing three budgets for next year: a best-case, most-likely and worst-case scenario. Mr. White's plan will ensure the continuation of second teams in both the best-case and most-likely scenarios. The worst-case scenario could be another story."
White was optimistic that whatever happened budget-wise, Saline would find a way.
"There are schools much smaller than ours, with around 1,000 students, that are able to support two teams at this level," he said. "They have to be creative and now we'll have to be creative, too."
Not all stories are guaranteed to appear
online. The Web edition contains a reasonable
sampling of the print edition stories.
For the most complete news coverage, we invite you to
subscribe
to the print edition of the paper.
Expanded
Web
Coverage
Staff Blog, "Inside The Newsroom"
TOP JOBS
