Chilton School District committee weighs participation fees for sports PDF Print E-mail
Written by Janet Murphy   
Thursday, 28 January 2010 12:28
    At a Co-curricular Committee meeting held last week, Chilton High School Principal Dr. Tim Schaid cited his recent survey of Olympian Conference schools, plus Kiel and New Holstein, which revealed that Hilbert, Manitowoc Lutheran, Mishicot and Wrightstown did not charge participation fees, while the other seven schools in the survey did charge on a per sport or per year basis and used a variety of fee structures. 

    Chilton Booster Club member Tammy Pethan told the Committee that the CBC does not want fees.  Instead, Pethan provided the Committee with ideas to help the Athletic Department reduce costs, including 1) the CBC could completely take over the School Store and 2) the CBC could become the ticket sellers/takers for all freshman, junior varsity and varsity sporting events. 

    Pethan went on to request an addition to the Athletic Code that “if your student is in sports, you are automatically a member of the Booster Club, and you in turn must do voluntary hours.” 

    Superintendent Dr. Claire Martin said she would have to check with the school’s attorney on whether or not the school can require membership in the Booster Club as a condition of participating in school sports.       

    Schaid stated his concern that the ticket selling/taking has been made available to teaching staff through their contracts, and that the use of volunteers would need to be reviewed to ensure there was no breach of contract with the Teachers’ Union.  Schaid added that the main job of ticket takers is supervision/crowd control.   

    Pethan also recommended collecting admission for softball and baseball games, and assessing a small user fee for everyone who uses the pool, and a higher fee for non-district users, as well as a weight room fee for all non-student users.

    Pethan said the CBC further recommended increasing book fees and eliminating bus transportation for all middle school sports, provided that the District would allow carpooling, adding that it worked well for the Youth Football Program.  Athletic Director Dave Sonnabend recalled, “There were many times when we had 8th grade basketball games last year that I think the only person riding back on the bus was the coach, and a couple other kids.”

    Pethan also wondered whether the bus routes could be better planned by possibly having those students who are driving to school sign off that they would not require bus service.  Pethan also suggested increasing parking pass fees to generate revenue. 

    Committee Chairperson Paul Meier appreciated Pethan for coming forward with ideas from the CBC, but wondered about not charging athletic fees while increasing fees in other areas.  Pethan responded, “This is school-related.  When you go to the weight room or the pool, it’s community members and it’s not directly school-related.” 

    Pethan was concerned about jeopardizing school sports and said that increasing book bills targets the whole District rather than a specific group of people.  Mike Barany, also of the CBC, said he canvassed about 15 parents who said that if the District charges user fees, they will have to pick and choose which sports their kids go out for.  Schaid suggested surveying Olympian Conference schools to find out whether participation went down when user fees were implemented.   

    Regarding naming school facilities such as the baseball field, Martin referred to Policy created last spring which states “ . . . areas to be named after an individual or entity only if the individual or entity is considered as a major financial contributor to the Chilton Public School District.”  Martin added that the contribution needed to be monetary, rather than time and/or materials donated.    

    Business Manager Lisa Lau addressed the use of Fund 80 to cover certain expenses saying, “As far as what gets designated to the Community Service Fund, the State is very specific as to what is allowable.  It has to be available to all the community.”  Lau said that expenses currently covered include open weight room, open swim, swim lessons, and Community Theater use of the Engler Center.  Lau said that this year the Community Service Fund would also be used to cover some utility costs.  

    Schaid also addressed random drug testing, saying that no schools in his survey of the Olympian Conference, plus Kiel and New Holstein, perform random drug testing.  Schaid said that a few districts indicated that the implementation of random drug testing on students who participated in co-curricular activities was too costly and the money could be better spent on preventative programs.   
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