SAYREVILLE – The Sayreville Board of Education will continue to look into possibly implementing new sports programs in the district for the 2018-19 school year.
Discussions on new sports programs were prompted by parents requesting the implementation of an ice hockey program in Sayreville.
Other programs that currently do not exist in the district are lacrosse and volleyball.
A presentation prepared by Jennifer Badami, who is the athletic director for Sayreville War Memorial High School, on student interest in sports programs and cost analysis of new programs was shown to board members at their Aug. 22 meeting. Badami was not present at the meeting, but Superintendent of Schools Richard Labbe spoke about the presentation.
According to the presentation, 378 students participated in the survey, approximately 57 percent male and 43 percent female. Twenty percent of the student participants were ninth graders (76 students), 17 percent were 11th graders (63 students), 16 percent were sixth graders (62 students), 13 percent were eighth graders (48 students), 12 percent were 10th graders (47 students), 11 percent were 12th graders (43 students) and 10 percent were seventh graders (39 students).
During the 2017 fall season, 51 percent of the students surveyed (193 students) said they were not participating in a sport and 49 percent (185 students) said they were.
The sport that most of the students said they will take part in during the fall was soccer, with participation from 16 percent (60 students) of those surveyed. Ten percent (39 students) said they will participate in cross-country, 9 percent (35 students) said they will participate in football, 5 percent (19 students) said they will participate in cheerleading, 5 percent (19 students) said they will participate in field hockey and 3 percent (13 students) said they will participate in tennis.
During the 2017-18 winter season, 51 percent of the students (194 students) again said they were not participating in a sport and 49 percent (184 students) said they were.
Most of the students participating in a sport (20 percent – 74 students) during the winter said they will take part in basketball. Ten percent (38 students) said they will participate in winter track, 8 percent (30 students) said they will participate in swimming, 5 percent (18 students) said they will participate in cheerleading, 4 percent (14 students) said they will participate in wrestling and 3 percent (10 students) said they will participate in bowling.
Fifty-eight percent (219) of the surveyed students said they were not participating in a sport during the 2018 spring season, while 42 percent (159 students) said they were.
Track received the most participation of the sports listed during the spring, with 17 percent (63 students) saying they will take part in it. Nine percent (34 students) said they will participate in baseball, 6 percent (24 students) said they will participate in softball, 5 percent (18 students) said they will participate in golf and 5 percent (18 students) said they will participate in tennis.
When asked what they would play during the fall if girls’ volleyball was available, 23 percent of the student participants (87 students) said they would play volleyball. Forty-one percent (153 students) said they would play the sport they already chose, an 8 percent decrease among sports participants, and 36 percent (134 students) said they still would not play a sport, a 15 percent decrease among non-sports participants.
When asked what they would play during the winter if boys’ ice hockey and girls’ ice hockey were available, 21 percent of the student participants (79 students) said they would play ice hockey. Thirty-four percent (128 students) said they would play the sport they already chose, a 15 percent decrease among sports participants, and 45 percent (171 students) said they still would not play a sport, a 6 percent decrease among non-sports participants.
When asked what they would play during the spring if boys’ lacrosse and girls’ lacrosse and boys’ volleyball were available, 25 percent of the student participants (95 students) said they would play lacrosse and 14 percent (51 students) said they would play volleyball. Thirty-two percent (120 students) said they would play the sport they already chose, a 10 percent decrease among sports participants, and 29 percent said they still would not play a sport, a 29 percent decrease among non-sports participants.
The estimated first year cost of an ice hockey program in Sayreville would be approximately $26,000 if the district partnered with an existing program at another district. Volleyball has a slightly higher first-year cost at approximately $28,000, which Labbe attributed to the fact that Sayreville would not partner with another district for the program. At approximately $33,000, lacrosse has the highest first-year cost.
If Sayreville continued to partner with another district for ice hockey, the total estimated cost would decrease to approximately $21,000. Sayreville’s own ice hockey program has a total estimated cost of approximately $57,000. Labbe said the district is expected by the New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association, the state’s governing body for scholastic sports, to eventually have an individual ice hockey program
The total estimated cost of a volleyball program is approximately $55,000. Lacrosse also has the highest total estimated cost, which is approximately $70,000.
For the potential ice hockey program, Sayreville may partner with the neighboring Old Bridge School District, which has an ice hockey team. Labbe said Sayreville would not be able to partner with Old Bridge for the 2017-18 school year, but still had the opportunity to partner for 2018-19.
Residents have voiced support for the ice hockey program at previous board meetings, with some residents stating that they were willing to leave the district to ensure their children had the opportunity to play ice hockey.
Some board members support the potential ice hockey program, while others have questioned if the volleyball and lacrosse programs were more desired in the district, and additional members have felt that the money for the program would be better allocated towards academics.
After further discussion among the board, board members agreed to make the potential sports programs part of their budget discussions for 2018-19.
Contact Matthew Sockol at msockol@newspapermediagroup.com.
