Practice, gear, tournaments and bussing are just some of the few aspects needed to maintain the operations of a sport. However, there is much more that goes into it beneath the foundations—experiences that enrich the spirit of a sport such as uniforms, team bondings and banquets. Whether these needs are met are ultimately determined by the funding acquired by respective sports. The question is: where exactly does this funding come from?
At the beginning of the year, the school district gives the athletic department $20,000 for equipment, $40,000 for transportation and part of coaching stipends to cover 26 sports. The portion of the budgets each sport gets is determined by several factors such as equipment needs and how many students there are on the team. Other expenses and activities need to be fundraised.
“It’s of utmost importance that students participate in [all the fundraisers] that coaches are putting out there because they want to run a high level program. If a coach doesn’t go out and request fundraising [incentives], then they’re not going to have the funds to do what they want to do,” athletic director Jerry Person said. “When you go out and compare it to the club and travel world, parents pay anywhere from $500 to $1,000 a month for their kid to be involved. When you’re on campus here and are asked, ‘Can you donate $200 or $300 to help us offset our budget deficit?’ it would seem like a drop in the bucket.”
Person asks for each coach to have a line item budget that explains exactly what they need to spend that year. They then take into consideration what needs to be raised and plan fundraisers to account for the costs. Some examples of fundraising include collaborating with restruants and selling goods. The money raised from fundraising incentives go into a sport’s Associated Student Body (ASB) account, to which they are able to use to go toward their program for aspects such as uniforms, equipment, travel or coaching. In the case that funds are insufficient, the money ASB raises from incentives such as ASB card sales are able to be given back to support the sport, or the sport may have to eliminate certain things altogether. If coaches must request funds for maintenance issues like new net poles and latches for tennis, a work order must be approved by the school accounting department. These funds are essential toward running a successful and competitive program.
“I think tennis should get more funding because we are in desperate need of many upgrades. Net poles are barely holding up recently and they are starting to rust to the point that they are falling down,” Fasheh said. “We need the courts to be playable for the players and so it needs to be maintained in general due to all the structural wear and tear on the tennis courts. For example getting the funds for resurfacing the courts that are filled with cracks would be really great for our entire team overall.” Ω
