LYNNFIELD — Families will have to fork over more cash for their students to play sports at the high school next year.
Athletic user fees will increase by 50 percent next school year, with individual fees increasing from $400 to $600 per student athlete and capping at $1,200 (from $800) for families.
The School Committee voted for the increase Tuesday, citing a need to bring in more revenue to pay for other athletic program costs at the high school level.
The fee increases will go into effect in the fall 2021 sports season.
“In order to increase revenue for the district as costs for transportation, uniform replacements, equipment fees continue to increase over the past 10 years, we feel that it is fiscally responsible at this time to increase our athletic user fees,” said Superintendent of Schools Kristen Vogel. “The School Department doesn’t have many opportunities to generate revenue, but the one area we do is athletic user fees.”
Vogel initially proposed the fee increases during the school board’s April 27 meeting.
The town’s user fee is currently the lowest in the 11-member Cape Ann League, which includes Lynnfield High, according to Vogel, who said the increase next fall would put the district somewhere “in the middle of the pack.”
For example, Amesbury charges a flat $285 per sport, while North Reading charges $400 for the first sport and $200 for a second sport, with a family cap of $1,300.
Masconomet uses a different approach, with fees varying depending on the sport. For the 2021 spring season, fees ranged from a low of $300 for track and field, to as high as $500 for lacrosse, $550 for softball, $600 for baseball, and $650 for wrestling.
School Committee Chair Rich Sjoberg was supportive of the increase, saying current user fees only cover about 10-15 percent of athletic department expenses.
“This increase will give the school an additional $90,000 in revenue, which will cover another 10-15 percent of overall costs,” he said.
But some committee members felt the fee increase proposed by the superintendent was not enough to keep up with district expenses.
“We hope not to have to raise it again for a number of years,” said member Jamie Hayman. “But is this enough so that we don’t have to come back in five or six years? It seems like yes, but I don’t know.”
“I am also thinking, is it enough?” member Phil McQueen added. “Is $600 enough to get us through the next five years, and can we start looking aggressively for other ways of funding?”
“I am concerned that $600 isn’t enough,” said Kate DePrizio, another committee member.
Despite the pushback, Vogel opted to stand by her original recommendation.
“I’ve had conversations with (Director of Finance) Tom Geary and (Athletic Director) Michael Bierwirth, and while the fee hasn’t changed in 10 years, an increase of more than $600 might serve as a deterrent and we will lose student athletes,” Vogel said.
“We feel strongly that we should stick to the $600. Perhaps we should look at a four-year cycle and also explore other revenue options, but we don’t want to risk losing kids,” she said.
The user fee for nonathletic extracurricular activities at the high school and middle school will remain at $300 per student next fall.
