Members of the Guilderland community packed out the High School’s Large Group Instruction room at the Tuesday, April 27 meeting of the School Board to voice their support for the cheerleading program and freshman sports, two activities cut in the proposed budget. After hearing the concerns, the board would ask the district to consider a method by which the eliminated programs can be funded by private donations.
The elimination of any sports program is unacceptable to us as taxpaying citizens, and voting members of the school district, said Kelly Smith, who began the outpouring of support for the program in the public comment portion of the meeting. Smith is the mother of a member of the high school cheerleading squad and a member of the varsity football team.
`What does the school district stand to gain from a sport that costs $3,700 to run?` said Smith. Smith said last year $18,000 worth of entrance fees were collected from the school’s sporting events, with at least half attributed to varsity football `Nine thousand dollars in revenue must clearly be enough to support a $3,700 cheer program that brings show much energy and spirit to every football game,` she said.
Smith was followed by a number of parents, cheerleaders, football players, and community members on hand to support the cheerleading squad and freshman sports.
Gary Applebee, a parent of two cheerleaders at the high school, said he disapproved of the way the decision to cut the program was made, particularly with what he said was the lack of notice given. `There is the distinct impression that this decision was made in a vacuum, that is was made as an administrative check in a box,` he said.
The elimination of freshman and repeat sports was not included in the original budget presented in March; however, it made its way into the revised budget presented to the board at their Tuesday, April 13 meeting when the budget was passed by the board.
Michele Coons, a representative of Guilderland’s Pop Warner program, said that eliminating the high school cheerleading program would take away the role-models for aspiring cheerleaders in the Pop Warner program. `Many of your high school’s football cheerleaders came through the ranks of Pop Warner and return to our fields to give back as junior coaches,` said Coons, adding `the junior coaches are heroes in the eyes of our young girls.`
Jeanne Walsh, mother of two Guilderland High School scholar athletes, and executive vice-president of the eastern division of the American Cancer Society, detailed the health aspect of keeping the sports program at the high school intact. `The American Cancer supports an increase in physical activities within schools,` she said. Walsh said that research shows about 75,000 preventable deaths occur each year among children ages 6 to 17, largely due to obesity. `Children who live healthy live longer,` she said.
Dustin McGuire, a varsity football player at the high school, detailed the sense of community the sports program brings to the high school, especially in times of tragedy. `When I think about Dutchman Athletics two words come to mind `community` and `atmosphere,` said McGuire. McGuire specifically mentioned homecoming week in October of last school year when the community was faced with coping with the sudden death of a high school student, an event he said `left us all feeling lost and broken.`
`On October 4th, 2009 we marched out on the field to play a game that meant more than statistic or rank,` he said. `The Dutchmen football team did not play that game, the community did. Those 48 minutes were nothing more than the community coming together to heal.`
Shortly after the public finished commenting on the issue, Board Member Barbara Fraterrigo put forth a motion to fund the parts of the sports program that were cut. `At the last meeting I wasn’t thinking clearly on the effects this would have on 220 kids,` she said. Her motion was seconded by Board Member Julie Cuneo.
Board Member Emilio Genzano argued against the motion, noting that the restoration of the cut programs was defeated by a 7 to 2 vote when the board approved the budget. `Where are we going to get the money from,` said Genzano. Genzano said that restoring the programs, at the expense of others would be disrespectful to the budget process. `We can’t disrespect everyone that participated in this process,` he said.
Genzano was followed by a number of board members that opposed Fraterrigo’s resolution, including Board Member’s Gloria Towle-Hilt, Denise Eisele, Colleen O’Connell, and Cathy Barber, vice-president of the board.
Superintendent John McGuire said that legally the board cannot add to the budget, however, he said that can relocate funds from one part of the budget to another, although he voiced his opinion against that practice. `Tinkering with the budget you adopted is bad business, in my opinion,` he said.
Board President Richard Weisz eventually proposed an amendment to the motion that called for the district to come up with a structure by which a sport that was eliminated in the budget can be funded through private donations.
`In the very preliminary conversations I had people are very interested in doing that,` said McGuire.
According to Neil Sanders, assistant superintendent for business, the district can accept donations to fund a specific sport providing that the entirety of the funding is received prior to the season.
The amendment was eventually passed by the unanimous vote by the board. The school district is now tasked with coming up a method and rules by which donations can be accepted to fund the freshman and repeat sports and present the method to the board for adoption at the next meeting on Tuesday, May 11.
The budget is set to be voted on by voters with the district on Tuesday, May 18.
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