Pay-to-participate freeze approved by Saline school board
Pay-to-participate fees will remain at their current rate at Saline Area Schools for the 2013-14 school year.
Courtney Sacco | AnnArbor.com file photo
Currently, high school students pay a one-time $325 fee to participate in school-sponsored sports and middle school students pay $275.
Ten out of 12 Southeastern Conference districts have pay-to-play fees with Chelsea and Ypsilanti the only two schools without any. Saline has the highest rate for playing one sport, second highest for playing two and fourth highest for playing three. Eight districts have middle school pay-to-play fees and Saline's is the highest of them.
Pete Cunningham covers sports for AnnArbor.com. He can be reached at petercunningham@annarbor.com. Follow him on Twitter @petcunningham.
Comments
annarborfan
Thu, May 23, 2013 : 3:51 p.m.
@Samshoe It is my understanding that Saline Lacrosse is a club sport. I believe it costs $400 per player, plus a commitment by the player and family to volunteer their time and participate in Saline Lacrosse related fundraisers. I don't think this sport is part of the Pay to Participate Fee plan at Saline. CREW IS A CLUB SPORT. It costs $800.00 per rower AND we pay the school a pay-to-play. Therefore, CREW should be in the YEARBOOK. Any sport for Saline that wears Saline on there shirt should be in the YEARBOOK.
samshoe
Tue, May 21, 2013 : 1:34 p.m.
Not sure why they have a photo of lacrosse here. It is my understanding that Saline Lacrosse is a club sport. I believe it costs $400 per player, plus a commitment by the player and family to volunteer their time and participate in Saline Lacrosse related fundraisers. I don't think this sport is part of the Pay to Participate Fee plan at Saline.
Poorman
Tue, May 21, 2013 : 2:42 a.m.
Zucker, There is no shame in paying for what you use. A shame would be making others pay your way. This is a deal. The school drives them to many events in a bus, along with covering equipment, facilities, coaching, uniforms, etc. This $350 is not even close to what we are consuming. Thank you for covering the rest of the costs and offering so many sports and clubs for my kids. We owe the community a great deal for what my children receive through the Saline School system. Go Hornets!
Poorman
Tue, May 21, 2013 : 10:43 a.m.
There are financial assistance programs for the needy. Everyone is not entitled to free everything.
zucker
Tue, May 21, 2013 : 3:59 a.m.
And what do you say to those families who can't afford it? And can't afford all the additional miscellaneous costs associated with playing for a team. I played three sports in high school and never had to pay for anything. And my family could afford it if we had to. I had friends who's families couldn't and didn't have to. I guess it was just a better time to be kid.
julie1234
Tue, May 21, 2013 : 2:26 a.m.
Much of Saline can afford these fees. And given the current financial climate, and it makes sense that those that incur the costs would pay them. Please let us know how we can sponsor the families that struggle with these fees. This is a generous community that would be willing to help out.
zucker
Mon, May 20, 2013 : 11:56 p.m.
it's a shame there are such fees at all. kids should be able to play for their high school without also having to pay hundreds of dollars to do so.
Shawn Letwin
Mon, May 20, 2013 : 11:28 p.m.
It would be interesting to see a tabulation of each districts structuring of fees. Here is Dexter: High School Athletic Fee: 1st sport $ 250 2nd sport $ 150 3rd sport $ 100 Middle School Athletic Fee: 1st sport $ 150 2nd sport $ 100 3rd sport $ 75 A family cap will be set at $ 700 per family. Our family found that the fees weren't the expensive part. The expensive part was all of the non-sport related costs: yearly apparel, excessive/over the top social functions and celebrations at team functions; all promoted by a minority of parents causing the majority of families a financial strain. Expenses that were in addition to the thousands from fundraisers, etc.
Pete Cunningham
Tue, May 21, 2013 : 1:26 p.m.
Sorry, forgot Ypsilanti High School, which has no pay-to-play fees.
Pete Cunningham
Tue, May 21, 2013 : 1:25 p.m.
Here's a breakdown of fees for SEC schools in this format: School (1st sport, 2nd sport, 3rd sport, family cap). I apologize ahead of time for incomplete data on family caps. Adrian (75, 25, 0, ?) Bedford (160, 160, 160, 495) Chelsea ($0) Dexter (250, 150, 100, 700) Huron, Skyline, Pioneer (150, 75, 0, ?) Lincoln (140, 0, 0) Monroe (160, 160, 0) Saline (325, 0, 0) Tecumseh (160, 160, 160)
Thomas Jenkins
Mon, May 20, 2013 : 10:25 p.m.
Please review your own work, or pay an editor. "Currently, high school students pay a one-time fee of $325 fee participate in school-sponsored sports and middle school students pay $275."