Board tosses around soccer

By Leslie Silverman 

 

A discussion about the possibility of a soccer team at Hill City High School drew a crowd to the Hill City School District Board of Education meeting  March 13.

Several people spoke about the merits of a team.

One woman cited there is a “strong interest in soccer in  the community,” and was frustrated that an opportunity to co-op with Custer was brought to administrators and “immediately denied.”

The opportunity would have allowed students to continue in a soccer program at the high school.  

“Soccer is an option,” she said. “I feel like it being declined previously was not acceptable.”

Valerie Warner from Custer is a parent of soccer-playing children and involved with the existing program of spring soccer at the Custer YMCA.

“I’m super excited right now,” Warner said. “To have these kids with us ... with the Hill City group we’d actually have a fighting chance.” 

She also “strongly supported the co-op.”

Andrew Schock also supported the co-op program and offered, “whatever help you guys need to make this a reality.”

It was not clear what exactly would be needed from the district to get the program up and running. Activities director Wade Ginsbach has been in contact with the adults facilitating the Hill City Youth Soccer to find out more about the program.

He has also reached out to the Custer athletic director, who would be willing to have a co-op with Hill City if the district decided to go down that path. The team would be a co-ed team and varsity-only sport.

Financially the district would be “on the hook” for coaches and transportation.  There are still a lot of unanswered questions.

“I know if my kid was really into soccer I would be trying to get them to play somehow without leaving the school,” Ginsbach said.

Ginsbach was unsure what the ramifications of having a co-op soccer team would mean to the current sports offerings. Coaches have worked really hard to recruit for sports, according to Ginsbach.

It is unclear how many students soccer would draw. 

“That’s kind of where the unknown is,” he said.

Ginsbach said, “what’s gonna happen if we take three kids off our football team, three kids off our cross country team...our numbers... I don’t know if they can absorb that kind of hit.” 

Currently the football team has 26 players not including any eighth graders who may come out for the sport. Ginsbach knows of one co-ed team, Hot Springs. 

“Some of the issues with that are scheduling games. You can’t make playoffs,” he said. There would be no postseason.

Custer was able to get six games last minute, according to Ginsbach.

Ginsbach saidto start a sport “traditionally it’s been on the fundraising side,” he said. He believed that’s how wrestling, golf and cross country all began. 

If the district would pursue the team, it would be a fall sport. The district would make the game schedule. If interested, Ginsbach suggested a mid-April timeline for a soccer advisory. No action was taken on the matter.

Ginsbach acknowledged the girls wrestling team as the first ever in Hill City to go to state. He sees the sport continuing to grow. Superintendent Blake Gardner also praised the girls team. 

“Any time we have kids who wear the Hill City logo at a state event I’d like to recognize them,” Gardner said.

The board also discussed the proposed new state social studies standards and explained the potential impact on the district. 

Board member Rob Timm expressed his concern and said, “in my opinion the proposed standards are way out of line.”

Member Todd Grabow was curious to get stakeholders, teachers, parents and taxpayers take on the standards, but has not heard a lot from them.

He cited the annual Veteran’s Day assembly as one example of how Hill City students differ from other districts.  

“We had 500  K-12 kids who were completely silent during Taps,” Grabow said. “To say we have a civics and social studies crisis here in Hill City ...  I don’t believe it for a minute.”

Elementary principal Samantha Weaver explained the impact on the proposed standards. Weaver said the current standards are “very attainable” and give the students a depth of knowledge. She said the new standards would include a lot of rote memorization and be “pretty far from attainable.” She also explained the “new standards barely touch South Dakota” and would take away “too much” from students. 

High school teacher Joe Noyes agreed. 

“I really think these standards take away our local control,” he said, and his ability to tie his curriculum into the community.

Noyes also said the standards were too time consuming.

“If we’re talking about retention and depth of knowledge that’s not gonna happen because of how fast we’re gonna have to pile things in,” he said. Noyes said he was proud of the teaching going on in Hill City. 

“I encourage  Gov. Noem to come into our classroom,” Noyes said.

The board had mostly contractual action items on its agenda. It approved the resignation of maintenance director Jeff Anderson, who has been with the district for 24 years. 

TJ Schmidt will begin as the new director. “He really hammered home he’s Hill City,” Gardner said about Scmidt’s interview process.

The Hill City School Board meets again April 10 at 6 p.m.