May 26, 2016 at 7:00 PM - Special Meeting

Discussion:  Mike Goos read the mission.

Discussion:  Superintendent Dr. Troy Loeffelholz said the Board of Education asked the administration to research 25 questions. He thanked those who came to the board meeting a week ago for expressing their concerns about the co-op agreement. Dr. Loeffelholz said these people wanted to know if the co-op was still viable today. He said the district should look at the agreement every year and evaluate the players, coaches, parents and fans and see how they are behaving. Dr. Loeffelholz said one myth is that the co-op agreement contained a contact that said it was all the sports or nothing, and if one sport dropped out, the agreement would dissolve. There never was a contract. He said another myth is if a person pays taxes it guarantees an opportunity to play for CHS. Dr. Loeffelholz said no one is guaranteed an opportunity to play not even the students at CHS. Some tax dollars go to athletics. Another myth is CPS only kept the co-op agreement for two years for political reasons and to help get support for the bond issue. Dr. Loeffelholz said the board never believed this and it was not a topic of discussion. He said the board and administration have always looked at the agreement as a way to build better relationships. The relationship is not strained between students, but it is strained between the adults and parents. Dr. Loeffelholz said there have been rude comments made by parents from both schools. He said there is envy and jealousy on both sides. Dr. Loeffelholz said it is time to build a bridge and relationships.

Discussion:  CPS has been working with this agreement without a policy to govern it since 1995. At the June 20 board meeting, there will be a first reading of the policy. Dr. Loeffelholz met with Scotus and their administration is in agreement with policy. The policy states that CPS is supportive of providing extra-curricular opportunities to students who do not CHS. CPS will only co-op in activities that are not being provided by other schools within the district. Dr. Loeffelholz said he will develop guidelines and procedures for the cooperative agreement. Activities that are eligible for co-oping include but are not limited to: boys and girls tennis; boys and girls swimming, softball and baseball. All students participating through the co-op agreement must pass a physical exams and insurance requirements, and this information must be on file at CHS. All students also must purchase a C-Stamp, which costs $25. This is something that all CHS athletes are required to do as well. Non-residents of CPS will pay a $275 fee plus purchase a C Stamp. Dr. Loeffelholz said when the agreement was first made, the fee for non-district athletes was supposed to be $150 but to his knowledge CPS has never received any payment. He said this is why there needs to be a policy. All athletes and their parents must sign a receipt saying they understand the CPS code of conduct. Athletes from other schools will be subject to the same consequences as CHS students if they break the code of conduct. If tryouts are conducted and warrant student release from the cooperative agreement, a scoring system must be in place and published in the regulation. The activities director and principal of the school must approve these scoring systems. All students will wear Columbus attire or neutral clothing to practices and scrimmages. Clothing from other schools or youth organizations such as Mariners, Outlaws, Fire and Ice and Bullets, are not allowed. All students can participate on an equal basis. All students who participate in a co-op sport will be recognized in all publications at both schools (yearbooks, newsletters etc.). An activity committee from the CPS Board and Scotus board will met at least once a year with the Activity Directors from both schools and evaluate the agreement. These committees will look at students, coaches and fan behavior. If it is determined the co-op will end, athletes will be allowed to participate until they graduate from high school and an agreement will be made to determine when it will end. There will be a minimum of a two-year notice before the agreement will end. Dr. Loeffelholz said the policy will go to the board for the second reading on July 18 and if the board is all right with the policy final approval will be given. If the board is still discussing the policy, the final approval could take place in April. Dr. Loeffelholz said he looked at all sports over six years and determined a number of CPS students who could participate and a total number of participants. He said he looked at the numbers over the years to determine the amounts. Boys and girls tennis can have 25 CPS students and 35 total between JV and Varsity; swimming 55 CPS and 75 total; softball 32 CPS students and total 45 softball (Reserves, JV and Varsity); boys baseball 32 for CPS and 45 total (Reserves, JV and Varsity). The superintendent will consider the recommendation of the activities committee as to whether activities should be established in the future or current activities dissolved.

Discussion:  Board President Mike Goos told the audience that comments would be limited to 3 minutes. Brad Hansen said he appreciated all the work the administration did on the board policy. He said the baseball program is a good and quality program and that the co-op should continue with Scotus. CHS class of 2017 member Andrew Altstadt is on the baseball team. He said every spring the team comes together, and there is no CHS and Scouts. They come together as one. Altstadt said CHS needs the players from Scotus on the baseball team, and the four regular players from Scotus really helped the team out. Jeff Morton said he is a CHS alumni and is so grateful for the education he received at CHS. When growing up, he said he was the poverty kid and free lunch kid. Morton said he is a direct reflection of what CHS did for him. He did send his kid to Scotus but some of his son’s best friends attend CHS. Morton said the kids are not the problem, but the parents are the problem. He said there are a lot of other underlying issues, and there are things that needed to be cleaned up. He said ultimately it is about the kids and life lessons. Morton asked the board not to take that away from athletes. Brian Palmer applauded the board members for stepping back and finding facts and inviting the community to be a part of discussion. He said he is in favor of keeping the co-op. Columbus is in a unique situation where it is still a small town but large enough to compete on a higher level. Palmer said Columbus is fortunate to have three different high schools in town. He said when it comes to varsity sports, people need to represent Columbus with as many numbers as possible and having more players to choose from will help field a better team. Carrie Trofholz said she is representing swimming, which is unique because it is a non cut sport. There is only one class and having more people doesn’t mean a team competes at a higher level. She said even with Scotus, CHS couldn’t fill all the slots at meets. Trofholz said swimming allows athletes from two different schools to work together. She said they cheer on all students, and there is no issue with parent or students because of the school they attend. Trofholz said many Scotus students wear CHS gear proudly on game day and no students criticize them. Trofholz said the athletes don’t have a problem with the co-op. CHS 2016 graduate Sam Trofholz said he competed in two co-op sports tennis and swimming. He said Scotus is important to the swim team. Sam Trofholz said many swimmers learned a lot from Scotus swimmers. There have also been a lot of captains from Scotus, and there will be one from there next year. He said the additional people help teach athletes to be competitive. Sam Trofholz said there were three Scotus students ahead of him for varsity tennis, and he knew he had to work harder to try to get a spot. He said he never once thought Scotus was in the way of him being on the varsity team. Sam Trofholz said the friendships that are developed are great. He asked the board to keep the co-op with Scotus, so others can get the same opportunities. Ron Schilling said the co-op in baseball started way before 1995, and it is nothing new. He said if the kids were complaining about the co-op, it would be a different story. Schilling said it is the parents that want to run the program down. He said the kids even support each other in other athletic competitions by attending games. He said perhaps the parents should support and attend a game from another school.

Discussion:  Dr. Loeffelholz thanked people for being engaged tonight. He said he appreciates them coming to speak. Dr. Loeffelholz said it caused the board to do some reflection. He said the entire conversation stems around adults. Dr. Loeffelholz said there are three great high schools in Columbus, and parents must decide what is best for their children. He said administration will be documenting the athletes, parents, students and fan behavior. He reminded people that the kids are watching everything the adults do. The agreement will be evaluated yearly and be governed by both schools. Candy Becher said CPS has been involved with the co-op for 21 years and in the last week or so, she had a lot of friends contact her and all the comments were positive and none were negative. She said the board needs to listen to the kids because that is why we are here. Theresa Seipel said athletics is a huge time commitment for both the athletes and parents. She said she is very grateful people are so passionate about it. However, she said she wishes people felt the same about academics. Tim Pospisil said he received a lot of calls. He said he moved to Columbus for a job and was excited to come because of opportunities for kids. Pospisil said sports are a part of who we become and how we grow. He said parents spend a lot of time and energy wanting their children to be the next great athlete and for 99 percent that won't happen. He thanked the people for being professional. Doug Molczyk said he wished he had gotten the same amount of phone calls when the board was discussing the new reading program. He said he is not sure why there needed to be this meeting because the program is awesome. Molczyk said parents sparked an interested, which caused the board to see some of the shortcomings in a program that needed to be fixed. He said sports make for a well-rounded experience, but without academics, there wouldn’t be sports. Mike Goos graduated from CHS. He said he has had heard both negative and positive comments. He said it comes down to relationships. The relationships do exist between athletes, but the relationships aren't there with the parents. Goos asked how to resolve this problem and what steps can be taken. Goos said it takes effort on each individual to make that extra step and be courteous and kind. He said it is more about the relationships off the field than on the field. Goos said at the end of the day, the academics are what really count. He said athletics are important, but they aren't everything.

Discussion:  Nothing was shared.

Discussion:  The board did not go into executive session.

Discussion:  The board adjourned at 8:04 p.m.