ATHOL – At their most recent meeting, members of the Athol Royalston Regional School District School Committee decided a proposed policy governing the use of district athletic facilities needed a bit more work.
At last Wednesday’s meeting, committee Chair Lee Chauvette said he had a phone conversation with the superintendent (Darcy Fernandes) on the subject, “because I wanted to advise her that I did receive some phone calls from parents who were disappointed that the soccer camp didn’t occur. The word was out about the use fees, and I just wanted to relay that to her. She said to me that the only reason that happened is because the current policy states that no commercial entities can use the properties.”
Chauvette said Supt. Fernandes wondered aloud if something could be done to make the policy more flexible, adding that he informed her that he and the policy subcommittee would work on re-wording the policy.
The policy proposed by Chauvette Wednesday night said: “Sports camps that directly relate to Athol Royalston District sports teams will not be charged a user fee, except for custodial fees.”
“There are two sides to every point,” said Chauvette. “People can think that the basketball camp or the soccer camp is a profit business. But, trust me, what ended up happening was that the possibility of those flat fees caused them to make the determination not to have it.”
“A sports camp that involves our district sports teams – and that’s exactly what the basketball camp and the soccer camp are — feeders to our sports teams,” he said. “Those clubs are what develop our sport teams. If we start eliminating them, I don’t know how much longer we can keep our athletic department functioning.”
Chauvette also noted that many sports camps are run by district employees.
Committee member Charles Pretti said a dearth of sports camps could lead to local students deciding to attend school in other districts.
“Our kids, some of them,” he said, “didn’t forego going to camps. They went to camps in other communities. And they experienced and saw things in other communities. My concern there is, they may say, ‘I enjoyed that program. I liked their sports program. I’m going to school choice over there.’ That’s the concern I have when we don’t have our own programs here.”
“I think our policy should be relatively liberal,” said committee member William Chiasson, “given the fact that our schools are paid for by the community. They should be open to the community. It seems ironic we would just talk about sports groups. We should consider whatever community groups may want to use the facilities.”
Committee member Mitch Grosky said such groups as drama clubs and music camps should be given the same consideration as sports camps.
Several members agreed that any group using facilities should be responsible for cleaning up after itself, as well as cover any custodial costs that may be associated with their activities.
Chauvette noted that some groups would be required to pay use fees as high as $75 an hour under the current policy, a cost that could prove prohibitive for some.
District Counsel Fred Dupere advised that the policy subcommittee should work on new wording for the policy and forward it to him for legal review. The committee decided that would be the best way to move forward.