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Jack Welch
How important are athletics in schools and university institutions? It is important for students to be connected to their learning process. Why is it important to have connectivity? Research studies clearly prove students connected achieve at a higher rate. Athletics and all other activities are programs that help connect these students. When students connect to their school, academic achievement increases and there is a reduction in dropout rates, decrease in school discipline problems and increase in graduation rates.
In addition, public schools receive more money from the state. What? How does having activities increase monies derived by the school district from the state educational system? The average taxpayer views athletics as a cost only. Yet, the district receives additional funding because of the average daily attendance (ADA).
When monies are spent in education and budgets are created, it is important to understand how school finance functions. For the most part educational dollars derive from three sources: the federal government 3%, the state government 43%, and the local community about 54%. Taxes and average daily attendance (ADA) are the monies schools receive to finance education.
As districts create their budgets, personnel costs comprise most of the budget (approximately 83%), while maintenance, operations, and programs account for the remainder (approximately 17%). Programs for the educational enhancement of students are a small part of the overall budget and include a wide variety of activities for students.
Athletes have the highest attendance rate of any group of students in school and all activities in general have the second highest rate for any organization within the student population. Literally thousands of dollars per day derive from the attendance of these students. So, activities certainly prove to have financial gain for a district.
The question many people ask is how can a district spend money on athletics or extracurricular activities when there is a decrease in state funding, which has resulted in the district having to cut personnel? Answer: the budget consists of fixed yearly personnel costs, which perpetuate annually and make up most of the budget. The cost of operations provides adequate, equitable and safe programs for students. These costs do not perpetuate yearly. Student programs are important to maximize academic achievement. These programs provide opportunities for students to make connections with the school and help foster school pride.
By connecting students to their school, districts have lower dropout rates, increased graduation rates, and decreased discipline rates. In addition, districts receive increased monies from the state due to the higher average daily attendance. This sure sounds like a win-win situation to me.
Thought for the week,:“Let us not think of education only in terms of its costs, but rather in terms of the infinite potential of the human mind that can be realized through education.” Dr. Glenn Acker, retired superintendent.
Dr. Jack Welch is an educator and college football coach. His doctorate is in educational administration, and he has been an educator, administrator, and football coach, mentoring young minds, for over 40 years. He is also the author of Foundations of Coaching. He can be reached at jackwelch1975@gmail.com.