Cooperative Sports Sponsorship Considered With Hampton Public Schools
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In the late-Spring of 2024, Hampton Public Schools inquired about our district's interest in discussing a cooperative sponsorship of our schools' sports programs. Both districts agreed to wait until the Fall of 2024 before visiting with each other on the topic so that we could further examine our needs and interest in the matter.
In early-October, committees of three board members from each district met with each other to begin exploring a possible cooperative sponsorship of sports programs. Since then, the boards' committees have continued to meet monthly for the purpose of exploring, negotiating, and crafting a possible agreement. Boards of both districts have also discussed the progress, the status, and the specifics of these negotiations at their respective board meetings. Throughout this process, the boards and the committees of each district have been assisted in their discussions and their deliberations by their respective superintendents, secondary principals, and ADs. Meetings between the committees have proven to be positive, constructive, and productive.
The Heartland board has been steady, deliberate, and measured in its work and its discussion on this topic. Our board has continued to work towards a possible cooperative sponsorship with Hampton Public Schools because such an effort has the potential for helping to reach meaningful goals. The goals to be achieved by entering into a cooperative sponsorship of sports would include:
- Greater consistency in the number of student-athletes participating in all sports programs.
- Increasing the number and the quality of opportunities for our students and our student-athletes to excel and to succeed.
- Creating synergies by combining our resources - this would include our human resources (coaches, etc.) and our facility resources.
Early on, the boards of both districts decided that if an agreement were to be reached for the coming 25-26 school year, that such an agreement should likely be reached, and agreed to, in the month of February. It was felt that setting and meeting this timeline would allow both schools to properly complete the logistical processes required for the successful launch of the cooperative sponsorship this coming Fall. If a cooperative sponsorship agreement is to be approved by the Heartland board, a vote on the approval of that agreement would take place at a special board meeting that is currently scheduled for Wednesday, February 12th.
To help our stakeholders understand the general aspects of the cooperative sponsorship that are tentatively in place, a summary has been provided and attached inside of this article. The summary can be viewed by clicking the link located at the top of this article.
You are encouraged to visit with members of the Heartland board of education or the Heartland administration with any questions that you might have.