Cuts could hit activities

The Mat-Su School Board has proposed a list of potential cuts this week, many of which have a tremendous effect on local prep activities and athletics.

In order to reverse a steadily inclining deficit within the school district budget, the board listed a variety of programs in danger of losing funding and a roster of positions that could be eliminated.

Among the positions within the school district that soon could vanish are the local prep activities directors. Jamie Smith of Houston, Jim Simmons of Palmer, Mike Boyd of Colony and Doug Bean of Wasilla are all in danger of losing their current positions.

Bean is retiring in the spring after more than 20 years of service within the school district. Boyd and Smith are each certified teachers and could be repositioned within their respective schools. Simmons is also an acting assistant principal at Palmer High School and could be a candidate for the permanent position once it officially comes available.

According to the school district, the plan could put the activities directors back into the classroom, which would help improve the teacher to student ratio. The biggest concern, if the proposal goes into effect, is who will assume responsibility for the tasks now completed by the activities directors.

The local activities directors are responsible for overseeing all areas surrounding co-curricular activities offered within their schools. These activities include all extra-curricular sports and all academic and non-academic clubs, including organizations such as Business Professionals of America and the pep band.

"Who is going to come in here for a month July 31 when football starts?," Smith said. "There is scheduling, insurance paper work, many things to do."

Each activities director's hours go far beyond the standard 40-hour work week. Bean estimates he spends an average of 75 hours per week focusing on duties that range from scheduling athletic events and coordinating the travel and expenses of the teams, to supervising all events hosted by Wasilla High School.

"For them to eliminate activities directors is a crying shame," Bean said. "For the activities and the building."

"My spin is if you don't have an activities director, why have activities?," Smith said. "Who's going to lead the charge?"

With the activities director position gone, the responsibilities may fall into the lap of the school assistant principals and coaches.

"At this point you look at the hours (the assistant principals) put in," Bean said. "It will be a burn-out position."

Wasilla high school currently has a pair of assistant principals, Dan Michael and Mark Okeson, who already have a weekly schedule comparable to Bean's.

"If the cut happens, there is no way to expect two people who already work 75-80 hours a week to pick up the slack," Michael said.

Michael added when the assistant principals are unable to complete all the new tasks, a trickle down effect will be created sending the responsibility to the coaches.

"Instead of coaching, they'll be quasi-administrators," Smith added.

Palmer High School principal Wolfgang Winter said with the cuts being proposed so recently, schools do not yet have a game plan to adjust to the possible changes. Winter said that if administrators were to absorb the responsibility of the lost activities directors, there may have to be some creative staff scheduling to accommodate the needs of the activities. Assistant principals could be working evenings and weekends to fill.

The board also listed other programs relating to athletics that are in jeopardy of being cut. Right now all elementary and middle school sports are on the chopping block, as well as the freshman C-teams at the high school level.