Okay... so, two days ago I said that the Fremont School District likely wouldn't be the only one to look at eliminating athletic contests within the school district as a way to save money.
According to the Idaho Falls Post-Register, the Mackay School Board is faced with that option as well.
Except that group may be forced to cut 100 percent of them. As in, bye-bye athletics and other extra-curricular activities:
The Mackay school board decided Wednesday to cut all extra-curricular activities after a $330,000 bond failed May 19. The bond failed 12 votes shy of the simple majority needed to pass.
Athletic programs aren’t the only activities on the chopping block. Two elementary teachers are retiring, and one and possibly both positions won’t be filled. The district will cut elementary music and physical education programs. Field trips will be a thing of the past, as will participation in Future Farmers of America and the high school scholastics team.
The cuts will not be official until June, when the school board proposes a budget for the coming school year. The school board is working with the community to find funding. However, if the school year began tomorrow, the budget wouldn’t include athletics or other extra-curricular activities.
Not that there are any school districts in Idaho where you say, "okay, that district dumping sports is no big deal," but seeing Mackay take that step is very alarming. It has been perennially among the strongest 1A athletic departments in the state.
The Miners won the 1A Division II boys state basketball tournament in March and reached the Division II state tournament in football, volleyball, and girls basketball this year. The program boasts a host of football state titles, including the 1A Division II title as recently as 2005.