IRVINE : Trustees to Join Council in Considering Athletic Fees

The school board voted this week to join with the City Council in considering the creation of a fee-based high school athletics program to protect sports from declining school district revenue.

While public school districts are prohibited from requiring fees for participation in athletics, they are not required to offer extracurricular sports programs, according to Irvine Unified School District officials. Fees could be charged, however, for an athletics program operated by a joint powers authority established by the school district and the city.

The Irvine City Council agreed to participate in the exploratory committee last week.

“This is certainly a way that we can get around some of the constraints that we live with,” said school board member Margie Wakeham. “With the city, it allows us to do many of the things we wouldn’t be able to do otherwise.”

School board members point to the Irvine Child Care Project as an example. The program, run jointly by the city and school district, offers child care services at local elementary schools.

School board members say provisions would be made for students whose families could not afford the fees.

A self-supporting high school athletics program could save the school district about $1 million a year. The school board is planning for $3 million in cuts from next school year’s $100-million budget.

School board members Hank Adler and Michael B. Regele and Councilmen Greg Smith and Barry J. Hammond have been appointed to serve on the committee.