posted
My oldest is trying out for color guard/dance line at the school and they sent home a letter for all the parents.
Now, I tried out for both color guard and dance line at my school, and granted it was a LONG time ago, but I distinctly remember that the school paid for all uniforms and equipment. We had to do fund raisers for the trips we took out of town for band competitions, but we didn't have to pay for everything.
Not now. I will have to come up with between $600-$1000 dollars by the end of May. Not only do they make us buy the uniforms and all equipment needed, but they only give us two months in which to come up with the money. I'm shocked. I did not plan on this, and with my tuition for the summer session due near about the same time, we've had to look at taking out a loan. I'm serious - I can't believe I'm having to take out a loan just to get my kid into a school-sponsored activity!
Talking to other parents, I'm finding out I'm not alone, one parent had to pay $1600 for her daughter to dance at a different school and I heard even football for boys is costing over a grand per season. Am I alone in thinking this is a little crazy? Not to mention that it seriously limits who can try out. I'm in a semi-rural school district, we have some people who attend our school that are below the poverty line, this makes school activities completely out of reach for them. I think that's incredibly sad. Posts: 14428 | Registered: Aug 2001
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When I was in high school, the cheerleaders and dance troupe had to pay for their own equipment. That's part of the cache - the rich kids do it.
I think it's fair, though. Those are extra - fun and good, but if it comes down to textbooks and teachers for everyone or dance uniforms for the fifty skinny girls who make it into dance troupe, I feel perfectly fine about choosing the textbooks.
Same for sports. Sports are great, but not everyone can participate and they aren't the point of school. Why should my education be short-changed to spend thousands of dollars on football uniforms? Those are EXPENSIVE after-school pursuits. It is completely fair that the small group of students who benefit from them front the bill themselves instead of taking it from the rest of the student body.
My high school took a trip to Europe every year, but we had to come up with the money ourselves. It was about a grand. I would hardly call it sad that I didn't get to go to Europe every summer with money intended for the education of all paying my way.
Posts: 26077 | Registered: Mar 2000
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My wife was in color guard in high school and did all kinds of fund raisers, this was about 10-15 years ago. She hardly ever had to pay for anything. Her parents barely even had to pay for the trip to England.
Posts: 3134 | Registered: Mar 2005
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Fund raisers make perfect sense - individuals don't have to come up with the money and so lower-income students can participate, but these expensive after-school activities aren't taking money from the general education fund to make it happen.
Belle, are there fundraisers for the color guard in place? Maybe you could help organize some to offset some of the cost?
Posts: 26077 | Registered: Mar 2000
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One thing that confuses me is how much it is: do they have to use such expensive uniforms?
I hope you can work this out, Belle. I really like seeing how fiercely you seek ways to allow your children to express themselves.
Posts: 26071 | Registered: Oct 2003
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I think school activities do more for people than just serve as something fun to do after school, and find it sad that only those with $1000 of disposable income get to participate.
If you don't feel that way, fine. But keep in mind that after school activities and sports often help disadvantaged kids find ways to help pay for college, that otherwise they would not be able to afford. I think kids are better served participating in marching band or athletics after school than sitting at home playing video games.
And I wasn't thinking of taking money away from textbook funds to pay for uniforms, but considering that football games cost five dollars per person to get in, 10 dollars to park a car, and heavens knows how much money concession stands generate, I guess I was thinking some of that money was available to help buy uniforms. Apparently, that's not the case, or uniforms cost more than I think. But I've bought gymnastics uniforms, and dozens of dance costumes over the years, and $1000 seems way out of line.
Edit: And I apologize, for my somewhat snarky tone. I don't mean to direct it at you guys, I know you're only trying to help and as a future teacher, of course I don't think that books or teacher salaries should be sacrificed for after school pursuits. I'm just very stressed trying to pay for all this, plus my own schooling and it's just upsetting to be hit with something you weren't expecting, and to be given such a short time table in which to raise the funds.
Posts: 14428 | Registered: Aug 2001
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I think extra-curriculars are great. Some are more expensive than others, though, and I think general money is better spent on upping the salary of teachers than providing shiny new equipment and uniforms for color guards.
I agree that it is wildly expensive to participate in some. However, I would prefer the costs be brought down and fundraisers held to raise the money rather than taking the money for them out of the general pool.
Posts: 26077 | Registered: Mar 2000
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posted
I'm a huge fan of extracurriculars. Something about the clapping and cheering makes kids think they are worth something. I know that cheerleading cost about a grand when I was in high school. I didn't ask questions, just looked at the pretty girls.
I remember having to shill for my soccer team, not so much for track. I hated it, but if you make everyone fundraise, then you don't target the poor kids.
Or you can just throw more money at education in general and hope it trickles down, after the teacher's pay increases and materials costs, to cheerleading uniforms.
quote:But keep in mind that after school activities and sports often help disadvantaged kids find ways to help pay for college, that otherwise they would not be able to afford.
I played sports in high school and college, and I think this is a pernicious myth. I think that sports get kids who wouldn't normally be interested in college interested in college, but anyone who thinks that the only way to pay for school is for sweating for the institution is usually wrong. There are enough grant and loan programs out there. To this day, I believe that hurting my back was the best thing that could have happened to my academic career, and maybe my life by extension.
Posts: 5600 | Registered: Jul 2001
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Marching band at my school was expensive. We had band uniforms, but they were like 20 years old, and only replaced as needed. Multiple yearly fundraisers and concerts paid our entry fees, and my last year we had to start paying for the school busses we used as well.
Color guard ordered fairly cheap uniforms, and the mothers working with band boosters generally sewed half their flags themselves, and we leased the other half and sent the flags back after the season was over.
We had a TAG Day, that raises a lot of our money, that we do with local businesses. You work with local stores and pick a day, then stand out in front of them basically begging for money, but you hand out a Tag that people can attach to their cars and such so wherever they go that day everyone else will know they donated. We also sent two or three roving pep bands around to different sites to entertain people, mostly the high traffic areas. Most of the money we got was either at the Farmer's Market or the bars later at night when people stumbled out drunk and tossed 20's into our collection cans, or at one bar where the owner told everyone coming in that giving us money was the cover charge.
Most of the locals love the tradition, and no one ever has a problem donating to their community in such a way. Might be something you could consider doing (that doesn't involve selling overpriced candy or other goods).
Posts: 21898 | Registered: Nov 2004
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My husband has reminded me that football cost a lot more to put on than they used to, because of requirements that an ambulance have to stand by, and insurance issues, etc. If you calculate how much it costs to pay referees, paramedics, trainers, etc. much of the monies raised at the gate and concession stand pay for those things.
It's my understanding there is a booster club for parents that gives financial reports on how much the programs spend and how much money is raised, I'll be interested to see those reports. Of course, she hasn't made the squad yet, this may all be moot. Although, I should note by the time I bought all the stuff needed to try out and paid the fees I've already spent $200. And no, that is not included in the $600-$1000 estimate. We had to buy a flag, for Pete's sake. I would have thought there were older flags that they could have let the girls use for try-outs.
Posts: 14428 | Registered: Aug 2001
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Sadly, this seems to be the rule now, rather than the exception.
The son of one of my best friends was in band, including marching band, all through high school, and the band boosters were expected to completely pay for the program. The district wouldn't even pay for the band director, as I recall.
Now, I'm all for everyone pitching in and doing their part. But as far as I'm concerned, that includes the district as well. If they want to offer a band program, they should have to pay for at least part of it, especially when they take all the credit when their musical groups go to parades and competitions of different kinds and do well.
Posts: 2454 | Registered: Jan 2003
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Basically, the problem is that schools have to pay more and more money for things like no child less behind, and are getting less and less money from the state and federal governments, and so more and more school activities need to be funded off of town property taxes... which simply aren't adequete to the task.
The school district I teach in, which is about 2000 kids or so, faces a shortfall for next year of about 1.4 million dollars. And thats only to provide the same services as were provided this year. The towns can't come up with that type of money... not off of property tax. But we're paying an extra several hundred thousand(And thats just special ed) dollars next year for special ed students compared to 2005-2006, and getting about 3 million less from the state and federal governments then in that year.
Guess what gets shafted? Extracurriculars.
Posts: 4112 | Registered: May 2001
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I find this situation sad. It was sad when I couldn't afford to participate in some activities (cheerleading and pom squad) because my parents couldn't afford it. I could only fundraise so much. People soon got sick of me begging for money multiple times a year (swimming in the winter, tennis in the spring, German and Key club, Student Government, theater, choir, etc....). I felt I deserved to have the same kind of high school experience as my rich friends. There is a point though when you have to say when. Sure, I want new textbooks and I want teachers to get paid more (my father is a teacher, and I assure you, he needs to be paid better) but it's just not fair to make a kid fundraise for every little thing.
Posts: 2064 | Registered: Dec 2003
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Sorta off-topic, but why in the world would you have to fundraise for German Club, Key Club, or student government? All of those can be run on minimal costs...
Posts: 2409 | Registered: Sep 2003
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I loved orchestra! Twenty five dollars for the uniforms for four years, 200 a year for the trip (that could be fundraised), 80 for the hotel room for that trip. That was pretty much it. Yes you had to fundraise, you had to help, but it wasn't ridiculously expensive. I can't speak for the other activities at my school though I know some sports were expensive and others weren't depending on how much the coach would do.
Posts: 5362 | Registered: Apr 2004
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quote:It was sad when I couldn't afford to participate in some activities (cheerleading and pom squad)
Maybe it was the recent Sports Illustrated swimsuit edition thread, but I definitely read that as "cheerleading and PORN squad."
Posts: 834 | Registered: Jun 2005
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At all the schools around here, the teams and squads do fundraising, and all fundraising goes into a general fund and they pay as much of the cost as possible from that. Any extra over that and the school picks up the cost from the athletics budget (that's what the athletics budget is FOR-- uniforms and equipment.) Parents are occasionally asked to pick up part of the cost above and beyond fundraising, but never more than $100, and that much is rare.
Posts: 21182 | Registered: Sep 2004
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Update: She had a great first day at clinic. They worked on basics with the flags and how to move and apparently their color guard is more dance-oriented than marching oriented, because they worked on jazz walks, chasses, and coupe turns. All of which my daughter knows pat because of her eight years of ballet and jazz training.
So....she feels very confident. They also said that there are more openings on dance line than color guard, and that is what she really wants. An incoming freshman, however, is required to try out for color guard and make it before even being allowed to try out for dance line, so that's why she is going through color guard clinic this week. If she makes it, we have to repeat the process and she has to spend a week in clinic and try out for dance line.
Posts: 14428 | Registered: Aug 2001
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