Athletic/Activity Fee Program Leaves No Student Behind

Editor's Note: This story was updated at 1:57 p.m. Friday.

On a humid July morning, high school junior and senior varsity football players are warming up. Accompanying them is a herd of eight to 13-year-old boys, huffing and puffing to keep up with the tall athletes in red and white Peters Township spirit T-shirts.

It’s time for training, and while the time these older students donate to their younger counterparts is free, their ability to play during the upcoming season is not.

The is the funding plan set up by the to combat the decreased spending Gov. Tom Corbett has issued for public education in Pennsylvania. 

All high school athletics and activities will charge a set mandatory fees in order to participate. Middle school athletics are also included in the program, though activities still remain without a charge.  

“We had to make a $3 million cut,” said Communications Coordinator Shelly Belcher. "So we sat down to figure out how to plan for this. Other districts have had to cut activities or athletic programs entirely. Our goal was to continue every program—and we have.”

With a price tag now added to everything from Peters Township Marching Band to Future Business Leaders of America, parents and booster groups have “been ridiculously supportive” of helping students afford participation, according to Belcher.

“We (the school board) do not assume that every family can just write the check, especially those with multiple children in sports or kids who are involved in more than one activity,” said Belcher.

School board officials determined the payment system, including when funds are collected from the students, in the hopes that a price tag will not deter initial interest.

“The first club or activity meeting is normally an introduction, so if a student decides he or she wants to come back for the second meeting and commit to the program, then we take the check,” said Belcher.

“We didn’t want to go to the level of having to collect money and then give it back. Some of our sports make cuts, so it’s not fair for a student to have to pay a fee if he or she doesn’t make the team.”

But questions continue to surface about the payment plan. One Peters mom, who wishes to remain anonymous, said that her eldest son is currently injured, but is still on the high school football team. 

“I’m not sure if we will have to pay or not,” she said. “He’s out for the season, but you do what you got to do. My younger children go to , so we are used to paying for activities.”

High school football Coach Richard Piccinini estimates that more than 70 high school boys will either tryout for the first time or return to the Indians this fall. His estimate for the middle school is approximately 80 team members. Piccinini said that they are a “no-cut program—if you tryout, you make the team.”

The high school football team has yet to collect the $90 check per player, and plan to do so at the first game of the season, said Piccinini.

As a first-year coach in Peters, Piccinini said that he does not have an opinion of the program thus far.

“It’s new, so there may be some growing pains to get used to, but I don’t see it over all as a bad thing,” said Piccinini. “We got to keep our program and all our personnel, which is important.”

Parents or students with questions about the program can visit the district website, and are welcome to write to Superintendent Nina Zetty or Athletic Director Brian Geyer with concerns.

View the attachment above for the list of athletics/activities involved, as well as fee amounts.