Les Cheneaux Schools Give Nod to Wednesday Sport Scheduling, Hike Driver Education Fees
By Amy Polk

At left: Marcia Altmaier of Cedarville, a former Les Cheneaux Community Schools teacher, helps students with homework during the third Homework Helpers session at Les Cheneaux Community Library in Cedarville Tuesday, January 16. She was joined by Marcie Thompson, Priscilla King, and Lisa Dunn that day, who packed the community room with students seeking help.

Les Cheneaux Community Schools Board of Education agreed to the use of Wednesday nights for athletic games, if it becomes necessary, and voted to raise the school's fee for driver education by $75.

Trustees voted 4-1 at the regular meeting Monday, January 15, to support the request by the Eastern Upper Peninsula (EUP) Athletic Conference to consider using Wednesday nights in December, January, and February for scheduling some of the 40 girls and boys basketball games in the winter season, as a result of a recent court decision that will move girls basketball to the winter, rather than the fall.The change would force local schools to utilize more days of the week to accommodate the simultaneous seasons and avoid pitting boys and girls basketball games against each other by having games the same nights. The traditional season in the EUP Conference has girls basketball in the fall, with regular games on Tuesday and Thursday nights. Boys basketball in the winter is played Tuesday and Friday nights. If girls and boys basketball are both in the winter, area athletic directors have proposed using Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday nights for games, with Saturdays left for rescheduling canceled games. Monday games would encourage mandatory Sunday practices, so athletic directors are reluctant to schedule games then.

Eastern Upper Peninsula school districts previously had an informal agreement with local churches and religious organizations to keep that night open for religious activities and youth group meetings.

The request to open that night to athletic games came as the result of a Michigan-based gender equity case that is now being appealed at the United States Supreme Court. The case was started by Grand Rapids parents and the group "Communities for Equity," which contended that high school girls athletics are scheduled at disadvantageous times of the year for scholarship opportunities and for college recruiters to see performances, thus affecting the student athletes' chances for scholarships and attention from college recruiters. Concerns were specifically about girls basketball being held in the fall and volleyball in the winter, which is opposite from the way colleges schedule their seasons. The group also complains that the Michigan High School Athletic Association (MHSAA) violates federal gender equity laws because girls do not have access to adequate facilities and their athletic seasons are shorter than boys seasons, among other discrimination claims.

Michigan High School Athletic Association, which is defending the current athletic schedule of volleyball in the winter, argues that the schedule is fair and not subject to federal gender equity laws because the MHSAA does not receive federal money. The MHSAA is appealing the decision of federal and appeals courts, which ruled in favor of Communities for Equity, thus forcing the girls basketball season to winter and volleyball to the fall. The MHSAA is appealing the case for the third time, following a December 7, 6th Circuit Court denial of the second appeal.

Les Cheneaux Community Schools is the second district in the Eastern Upper Peninsula (EUP) Athletic Conference to support using Wednesday night for scheduling. Pickford has not formally adopted a resolution, but plans to comply with the results of the ruling and the EUP Athletic Conference's recommendation, Superintendent Keith Krahnke said.

"It wasn't something this board was eager to sign on to," Mr. Krahnke said. "But we need to play the opponents in the conference when they are available to play."

The other three schools in the conference, Brimley, DeTour, and Engadine, are also considering opening the night to scheduling games at the request of the conference, but have not yet discussed it at the board level.

EUP Conference President Dave Duncan, also Cedarville's athletic director and boys basketball coach, wrote to local school boards that the MHSAAis encouraging all member schools in Michigan have a new schedule reflecting the changing athletic seasons in case the appeal falls flat again. Mr. Duncan has previously told trustees to prepare for the possibility of scheduling games on Wednesday nights to accommodate both boys' and girls' basketball games in the same winter season during the 2007-2008 school year. Volleyball would be played in the fall, if the decision is upheld.

School Board Vice President Dave Murray cast the lone "no" vote against the use of Wednesday nights for games. He remarked that he knew it was important to make a decision that night, owing to scheduling demands, but he would have liked to have had more time. Mr. Duncan told The St. Ignace News that the Board of Education already agreeed in 2005 to use Wednesday nights if it became necessary, following meetings with area church leaders who expressed their concerns with leaving the night open.

He noted that the Supreme Court has until June 1 to decide whether the case will be heard again, or whether the Circuit Court decision will stand. If the case will be heard again, or if the court makes no decision, the winter athletic schedule will remain as it is now, with Wednesday nights open for church activities. If the decision stands, districts in the EUP Conference may start scheduling games Wednesday nights, but only in the winter season.

In other news, students who want a driver's license will now pay $325 for driver education at the school, following trustees' decision to hike the fee by $75. Increasing costs and a lack of state financial support prompted High School Principal Randy Schaedig's suggestion to increase the fee, as the district is already facing a deficit and can't afford to support the program, he said.

"Over the last four years, the state has been scaling back the funding for this program, and even though we increased it to $250 last year, we had a $1,700 loss," Mr. Schaedig said. "The big one was the driving time last year, which is one of the fixed costs of the program."

Last year, the district raised the charge by $25 to $250, to cover what Mr. Schaedig said was an $11,000 cost to the district in 2004- 2005. Fixed costs like teacher salary, coupled with fewer students participating in the program, are costing the district more to run the program. Mr. Schaedig estimates the program costs $332 per student, however, at $325 for district students and $350 for out-of-district students, that "is as close we can come to covering our costs," he said.

Private driver education could cost a student more, Mr. Schaedig said, factoring tuition and transportation to and from the site if the student had to take a program elsewhere like Sault Ste. Marie or St. Ignace. Some Michigan school districts are abandoning school-based driver education programs in favor of allowing students to seek private instruction. In St. Ignace, LaSalle High School students are referred to a private service in Cheboygan, which charges $295 for two segments of instruction. The instructor comes to St. Ignace to teach the course to students.

Mr. Schaedig noted that Michigan residents are required by law to take a driver education course at some point in their life.

Following the vote on the issue, Mr. Murray requested a detailed breakdown of costs to run the driver education program.

Trustees formally rescinded a December board decision to extend school days by 40 minutes to close the school for 10 days to save money. The 2006-2007 school year schedule will remain as it is for the balance of the year, owing to an anonymous donation of $15,000. The donor stipulated that money be used to replace the savings the district would have realized by closing for 10 extra days.

Mr. Murray questioned whether the board was planning to consider any other cuts, since a deficit of nearly $170,000 remains after the donation and other cuts made in December. Superintendent Rod Goehmann said the district is still projecting a $40,000 savings in health insurance coverage this year. There have been fewer claims against the district's self-funded insurance plan this year, resulting in the savings Mr. Goehmann reported. The plan includes budgeting $10,200 per district employee, and employees turn in medical bills to the district for reimbursement. Last year, the district saved approximately $60,000 from fewer employee claims.

Mr. Schaedig reported that Cedarville High School Student Council worked at an early January American Red Cross blood drive in Cedarville and helped collect more than 40 pints of blood. Assisting with the blood drives is a regular Student Council project, and students help by hosting the drives, calling prospective donors, checking them in, making donors comfortable, and serving snacks.

Cedarville High School's National Honor Society inducted 17 students during the 2007 Induction Ceremony. Students in sixth through 12th grade with a 3.2 grade point average are eligible for the society.

He added that high school students recently had the opportunity to meet with Cedarville graduates now attending Central Michigan University in Mount Pleasant, Michigan State University in East Lansing, and University of Michigan in Ann Arbor. The annual program to acquaint high school juniors and seniors with the college experience is coordinated by school counselor Pat Feldhake.

The district has scheduled the inschool celebration of Frog Fest for May, and is still confirming the date to coincide with the communitywide activities offered by Les Cheneaux Watershed Council. The event will be in mid-May, and will include field trips, wildlife and nature education programs, water quality activities, and a geocaching trip.

Students can visit with former Les Cheneaux Elementary teachers Marci Altmaier and Marcie Thompson at Homework Helpers, a new after-school program offered at Les Cheneaux Community Library Tuesdays and Wednesdays. Elementary and middle school age children can get free assistance with school work from the certified teachers and other adult helpers.

"This program will complement Homework Lab (at Les Cheneaux Schools) by giving students the opportunity to complete classroom work three days a week with certified teachers," Elementary Principal Eric Cardwell said.

Homework Lab is offered Thursdays at the school from 3:15 p.m. to 4:30 p.m.

The next regular board of education meeting will be Monday, February 19, at 7 p.m. at the Les Cheneaux Community Schools library.