The Commerce City Schools’ board of education approved a new athletic team, which will dive into its season immediately.
The high school was authorized to organize a swim team this winter with limited participation and a scaled-back schedule to include about three to four competitive meets, said athletic director and principal Donnie Drew.
He outlined the pros and cons of such a team during the board’s regular work session last week.
The approval came as part of the board’s consent agenda Monday. It is contingent upon the parents picking up nearly all of the costs for the four to five member team this year, excluding transportation and the GHSA coaches’ training for a certified coach.
Outside of the coach being an employee of Commerce City Schools, it was unclear who that person will be.
“They want to start that this year with very little cost to the school system,” reported superintendent James “Mac” McCoy. “If that goes well, it can possibly move into next school year with keeping costs at a minimum.”
Parents initiated the discussion with Drew about two to three months ago, he told the board.
While initial talks related mainly to the 2012-2013 season, the timeline accelerated after a recent meeting held on the subject.
“Two or three parents asked if we could get it going this year, on a limited basis,” he said, indicating that competing in the state meet was a goal.
To accomplish that, a certified staff member must attend competitions and account for qualifying swim times at regular season meets before entry in the state event in February.
The kids designated to participate this year belong to swim clubs and have access to pools for their own training, Drew reported. How that will change next year, or change program costs, is one of the factors Drew hopes to explore through this brief season.
There will be small fees for each meet entered, Drew said, and the system agreed to furnish transportation.
“It would not e a very large cost this year,” he said.
Next year, Drew anticipated a more significant investment with the renting of pool time for practice, a coaching stipend, uniforms, transportation and meet fees all in play.
Drew outlined the maximum number of meets as 10 next season, the number of swimmers interested around 10-12, and the costs as high as $300-400 per student.
However, he envisioned some ways to pare those costs down. He also told the board he’d pay close attention to how area swim teams are administered so that he can better assess what to plan for next year.
“You’re talking about a sport that’s all out and no income. That’s OK. That’s not a reason not to do it, but when budget is tight it makes it more difficult to do it,” Drew said. “The benefits are, it is an acceptable sport for teenagers and it is a lifetime activity.”
