High schools face budget squeeze play

High school sports administrators are bracing for a budget hit they hope is a glancing blow rather than a knockout punch.

Their concern has been heightened by the state's $14.5 billion budget deficit and Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's attempt to whittle it through cuts to public education and suspension of schools' constitutional funding guarantee under Proposition 98.

High school athletics could be among programs that suffer if Schwarzenegger's 10 percent across-the-board cuts are made.

"This whole budget business has created all this uncertainty," said Steve Williams, director of pupil services for the Roseville Joint Union High School District. "But we know that the cuts are coming. Certainly, athletics may be a program to receive some cuts."

Pete Saco, commissioner of the Sac-Joaquin Section of the California Interscholastic Federation, said athletics could face "big trouble."

"While I don't think sports will be eliminated completely, I can see a scenario where maybe freshman sports get dropped or where schools simply decide to turn some sports, like soccer, over to the clubs," Saco said.

Many school districts are looking for places to cut their budgets.

"It's way too early to tell what's going to happen," said Terry Rasmussen, the San Juan Unified School District's program specialist for athletics. "I know those looking at the budget are being very cautious in planning. They are looking at everything.

"But if the governor's plan goes through, everything in the district could be affected in some way."

School districts throughout the region provide varying financial support for after-school athletics, ranging from most of a school's sports budget to smaller percentages at schools with significant booster support. Williams said the Roseville district pays for most coaching stipends, transportation and equipment for its four high schools.

In the 2007-08 budget, Williams said the 220 district-paid coaching stipends and benefits at Roseville, Oakmont, Granite Bay and Woodcreek total $725,000. The district also will pay more than $82,000 in athletic transportation costs.

Booster clubs at the four high schools will provide $150,000 for coaching stipends this year, Williams said.

"I think most of us are of the opinion that athletics is a focal point of any campus," Williams said. "So there is a strong incentive to try to keep them."

But he says that could become a challenge soon. Based on recent projections, Williams said the Roseville district is looking to pare $288,000 from its current budget and $4.8 million from next year's. Other schools rely less on their districts for athletic funding.

Del Oro athletic director Monte White said the Placer Union High School District provides about one-third of his school's $300,000 athletic budget. The Golden Eagles generate money through a voluntary participation fee, which is $150 for the first sport per athlete, and fundraisers.

"There hasn't been any discussions yet about budget cuts," White said. "If we have to take a 10 percent cut, we would feel it.

"But if I put the call out that we are going to have to roll back 'X' number of stipends, the coaches will rally around and say, Let's see what we can do."

At El Camino, less than 30 percent of its nearly $300,000 athletic budget comes from the San Juan school district, athletic director Bill Baxter said. Weekly bingo games, other fundraisers and gate receipts keep the Eagles' 21-sport program afloat.

In football – where El Camino and most of the nine San Juan district high schools offer varsity, junior varsity and freshman teams – the district pays seven football stipends at each school. Baxter said his school covered an additional seven football stipends through its own budget.

"You can't run a quality program with the number of stipends the district pays for," Baxter said.

Baxter said El Camino does 104 nights of bingo annually, raising nearly $80,000.

"That figure varies from year to year, and while it's not as lucrative as it used to be, it's still a lot of money," Baxter said.

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