Two years after the Hollister School District removed athletics from its schools and the YMCA swooped in to offer middle school basketball, the Y is looking to expand its student-athlete programs.
For the first time this year, the YMCA is looking to offer middle school students the chance to play flag football, soccer and track and field during the school season, YMCA of San Benito County vice president Rochelle Callis said earlier this week. With the new sports, the YMCA hopes to build upon the 100 boys and girls who participated in basketball at Marguerite Maze and Rancho San Justo middle schools last year.
“We had such a great turnout last year with boys and girls basketball last year, we wanted to offer more sports to the middle schools,” Callis said.
To do that, though, the YMCA is actively looking for part-time employees – to coach and referee – and volunteers. To make the program work, the YMCA hopes to have a volunteer at each school to act as a liaison between the students and the Y.
“We need to do find some staff in order for us to expand,” Callis said.
The Hollister School District cut middle school sports in January 2011 after needing to make cost-saving efforts for the money-depleted district. The move saves the district $56,000 annually. In response to the elimination of middle school athletics, the YMCA partnered with school officials to offer basketball for a $100 charge. After one year without much interest, the YMCA had 100 participants during the 2012 season.
“I think it’s a little different for people in the community to pay for school sports,” Callis said. “It used to be something offered for free. But with the changes at the school, paying for extracurricular activities is what needed to happen.”
Last spring, in the second year of the YMCA-ran basketball season, participation expanded. Reaching 100 students in the two schools, so the YMCA wanted to implement more sports the following year.
The Y expects to hold the same amount of kids this year, Callis said. Eventually, the YMCA hopes to expand its school-sports reach into the fifth and sixth grades and rural area schools, Callis said. Last year, Ladd Lane Elementary had a sixth grade only basketball team.
“Our hope is to start an internal league for those kids,” Callis said. “We want all the schools to have the same opportunity.”
As part of the YMCA’s three pillars – youth development, healthy living and social responsibility – the sports program will continue to aim for more student participation, Callis said.
“We want them to develop the right type of attitude, “ she said. “We want to see the kids participate in these type of activities. It’s an important component of the YMCA.”
She continued, “It’s all about youth development and keeping the kids active.”
With eight elementary after-school sports programs and two middle school programs, the YMCA hopes to eventually expand to San Juan Bautista as it adds new programs in Hollister. Including the three additional middle school sports, the YMCA will also be offering tennis for the first time for kids 10-years-old or younger. To volunteer or apply for a part-time position, contact the Kristie Agan at the YMCA at 831-637-8600. The sports season is expected to start in the spring.
