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Haldane Lacrosse Association Scores Goal with BOE
by Allison Dunne
Despite strong reservations on the part of a few Haldane Central School District Board of Education members, Board members approved the formation of a Lacrosse Club for the spring of 2007. The approval at the BOE's February 27, 2007 workshop followed a request from Haldane Lacrosse Association officers in a January 16 letter to Board of Education President Dave Merandy. In addition, the Association's president, Judy Colamarino, addressed Board members during a February 6 meeting, at which time Board members requested a formal, written proposal from Association members and Director of Athletics and Physical Education/ Dean of Students Susan Reid.
The BOE gave the nod to the club based upon stipulations, including that the Lacrosse Association bear all expenses; the Board's approval for the Club applies through the end of this school year only; and the Club will be open to grades 7-10. (Haldane's Varsity Lacrosse is open to grades 9-12.) The overlap of grades 9 and 10 is to allow students in these grades who may not be ready for the varsity level to participate in the sport.
The idea, explained Reid at the February 27 meeting, is to recommend to the Board at the end of this school year in which direction the non-varsity Lacrosse program should go, be it forming a modified team or a junior varsity team, depending upon student interest and budget, among other factors.
Board President Merandy voted to approve the Club, though with what he called "huge reservations." For one, he questioned whether Reid should be so involved with the Club, given that many of the logistics and approvals regarding Club activities would come across her desk. BOE Vice President Joe Curto said his approval came, in part, with the knowledge that Reid would play a key role in the Lacrosse Club. Curto also wanted to make sure that Haldane Lacrosse Association members understand that the Club is to last just through the end of this school year.
Reid said she would be a liaison, and recognized that her role would be on the greater side, saying her involvement would be needed to get a more comprehensive lacrosse program off the ground. Merandy questioned whether lacrosse should even be a club. He said given it is a high-contact sport, Lacrosse may be better suited to exist under the umbrella of an athletic team. Superintendent Dr. John Di Natale said the school needs some sort of prep program for a sport like Varsity Lacrosse.
Merandy said he would feel more comfortable if the club's athletes could condition with the varsity team members, and Reid said she thought the varsity coach would welcome that.
Merandy also said there are too many sports for the facilities available to Haldane, and that field conditions at the school, not to mention busing, are serious problems. Reid said if transportation is not available for the Club's away games, then the Club team will not play at that time. After some discussion about the athletic field's condition and the number of teams it could support, Director of Facilities Wayne Robinson chimed in, telling Board members that they were ignoring the fact that Haldane's fields could not support lacrosse from a regulation standpoint.
The lacrosse discussion gave way to a related topic. Given what has been and will likely continue to be an extremely tight school budget, Board members tossed around the idea of fundraising for sports. Vice President Curto, who has been a proponent of forming a Haldane Sports Association so that fundraising could go into a general sports fund and benefit all sports, suggested the possibility of forming an After-School Association, through which non-athletics as well as athletics could receive funding. That way, explained Curto, "fundraisable clubs" do not get all the money.
On a related discussion point, BOE Trustee Kathy Marino said she agreed with Curto that private fundraising will be an important component of clubs'/teams' survival, given the budget constraints. Superintendent Di Natale said private fundraising in this manner would set a dangerous precedent.
The newly-approved Lacrosse Club will be responsible for the $2,000 stipend for an advisor/coach. As for the position, which was to have been posted, Reid said Association members had a few leads on some who may be interested in the position. The Club will be covered under Haldane's insurance. Anyone wanting to help the Club with expenses can contact Judy Colamarino at Charlies Deli in Nelsonville, 265-3322 (but not during lunch hours).
Moving off the fields, what has already begun is an environmental program of sorts between Haldane and Putnam County. Walt Thompson, program manager for the county's "Keep Putnam Beautiful" program, delivered a presentation during the Board workshop entitled "Environmental Stewardship and Haldane Central Schools." Thompson spoke about the county recycling department's program with Haldane to remove paper. He noted that for some schools, having the county remove paper can reduce carting fees. He also said the county would like to extend the program to include pickup for recycling of cardboard and plastic, but the county budget, at this time, does not allow for the purchase of bins needed for the items.
In fact, Facilities Director Wayne Robinson said Haldane needed more bins, and there has been some confusion about pickup times, as Haldane will have its bins placed at a designated time and area for pickup, and there they will stay, with no pickup. Thompson also invited Haldane administrators to have students become more involved in the "Go Green Initiative", a grassroots environmental program that brings together parents, teachers and students in conservation efforts at campuses across the nation. He also suggested Haldane consider partnering with the Eco-Kids/Eco-Moms program at the Garrison Union Free School District, and/or the Go Green Club/Recycling Club at Putnam Valley Middle School. Thompson said the Go Green program is popular with middle school students.
Thompson spoke about two contests in which Haldane students may want to become involved. First, he said there is a state DEC-sponsored contest for students to put together a "New York Recycles" calendar. He says students who win are recognized by the State. Second, he mentioned that "Keep Putnam Beautiful" is recruiting and commissioning artists to paint trash cans (actually 55 gallon drums), with environmental messages. He said the county has about ten drums that it will deliver to selected entrants, those whose designs the county has pre-approved. The artist is responsible for the paint. From here, the cans will be on public display for votes, and the winning can's artist receives $100. He said students who want to enter should do so under close supervision.
The next Haldane BOE meeting was scheduled for Wednesday, March 7, 2007, at 7pm.
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