Superintendent's Article - September 25, 2008

Athletics, cheerleading, band, speech/debate, drama, choir and other clubs and activities are a significant part of the education offered for the children who attend Louisville City Schools. Participating in these learning experiences and "life lessons" are an integral part of learning and growing. The district and community can certainly be proud of our academic performance and the district's recent recognition as "Excellent with Distinction" by the Ohio Department of Education. We are also very proud of the achievements of our students in music, athletics, clubs and activities. Our young people make many sacrifices in time, effort and energy to participate in a wide variety of school clubs, sports and activities. I would venture to guess that several years from now our students, parents and community members may not remember our scores on the Ohio Graduation Tests, but they will always remember Friday night football games, band shows, teammates, cast members and many other school clubs and activities. Recognition of the great importance of these activities in the lives of our students and recent budget adjustments permitted the Board of Education to reexamine the district's pay to participate fees.

Recently, the Louisville City School District Board of Education took action to limit or "cap" pay to participate fees for sports, clubs and activities. Prior to Board action, the administration studied the issue of pay to participate, analyzed budget and financial positions, reviewed past community survey information and compared our pay to participate fees with other districts. After careful review, it was determined that changes in pay to participate needed to be made for the benefit of our students and their families. For all students to have the opportunities mentioned in the paragraph above, something needed to be done to reduce pay to participate fees.

Since spring of 2006, funds collected for pay to participate have been collected and deposited into the general fund to help pay for maintenance, bus fuel, drivers, equipment, officials, coach and advisor salaries, electricity, custodians, gate workers and ticket takers, etc. The implementation of pay to participate began several years ago when the district was facing some very tough financial decisions and needed additional budgetary relief. At that time, cuts were made and expenditures were reduced. The result is that we have a very tight but manageable budget for this year.

The Board reviewed the budget and determined that it would be possible to limit fees paid by families for students who participate in more than one activity. Our $350 participation fee is still one of the highest in the area and will continue to offset general fund expenses. The "cap" for students at Louisville High School is $350 and the cap for students at Louisville Middle School is $100. The Board and administration will make the budget for this year cover any lost revenues and examine and evaluate pay to participate fees each year in May. It is the hope of the Board that each and every student in our schools will never be denied the opportunity to experience an "Excellent with Distinction" education and many more wonderful memories and experiences that last a lifetime!