School Committee Provides Sports Fee Relief

Concerned parents and students poured into the usually empty School Committee Room at Arlington High School Tuesday night to hear the committee's decision on sports user fees. Ultimately the committee voted to reinstate a family cap at $1,600 and enact a $40 per sport discount for students that participate in a second or third sport. The motion passed with a vote of 6-1.

"None of us are happy with the situation, but this is an incremental improvement," Committee Member Joe Curran said after the vote. "We were asked to take action and although it is higher than what we wanted, we are able to put in a cap."

Athletic Director Ted Dever, Chief Financial Officer Diane Johnson and an unnamed parent performed a comprehensive analysis of the budget along with the Budget Subcommittee. Committee members maintain the $1600 cap and $40 multi-sport discount was the most relief they could offer to families given the current budget constraints.  

"We will map how we are doing at the end of each sport and if we are ahead of projection we could in the future consider a larger abatement," said Subcommittee Chair Leba Heigham.

But even though the fee structure is settled (for now), school committee members and parents alike are still questioning the administration's budgeting. During the public participation portion of the meeting, many parents voiced their frustration with the committee's lack of communication. One parent explicitly told the committee that he was extremely dismayed with the lack of accountability and he was "done" with them in every way possible, including raising funds for the Bridge the Gap Program.

Committee member Joe Curran was the only member to vote against the motion, citing the questionable financial knowledge of the parent that assisted with the research.

"There is a credibility factor missing here and I cannot approve this motion," he said.  

Curran also inquired about the purported $51,000 surplus in athletic funds that had been reallocated into the general school fund. Johnson explained that the budget was miscalculated and ticket gate revenues were incorrectly posted to athletic fees.

"The athletic fee budget of $51,000 needs to be adjusted by $13,000 immediately," Johnson strongly advised.

Curran pressed Johnson for further explanation about the budget, arguing that reallocating funds without a vote could have broken a law. Chairman Joe Curro advised Curran to stay within the topic, invoking outcries of "no" from those who attended the meeting.

Curro used his gavel several times to quiet the public in attendance and emphasized that the portion of the meeting was to vote on the "two-pronged" temporary solution. He attributed the money shuffling to insufficient revenue.

"Town appropriation revenues fluctuated and went against us," Curro explained. "I do think it would have been a violation if athletic programs had been cut or increased without the involvement of the committee. For now we have an immediate problem."

Other immediate problems facing the committee include a $1.5 million in FY2012, increasing insurance expenses and projected budget shortages for 2012 that could implicate the educational curriculum for the entire district.

"If we do not start collecting those fees we will have a deficit," member Kirsi Allison-Ampe explained. "We will need to lay off people and drop sports."

Starks explained that the new measure is an emergency response to parents' outcries and the committee is still responsible for a long-term plan to address rising sports fees.  

"This motion means 'yes' we heard you, so we are going to try to do something quickly. So let's move forward," she said.  

After freezing sports fees for the beginning of the winter season, collection from athletes and families will resume immediately. The newly formed Athletic Advisory Committee will address sports fee costs and collection at their inaugural meeting tonight at 6:30 p.m. at Arlington High School.