SAUGUS — The Saugus School Committee is trying to do something about students in the town who opt to attend private schools in other districts instead of staying home.
At its most recent meeting, the committee was particularly interested in working to recruit local athletes to attend Saugus High School instead of private schools. Committee member John Hatch, while reporting on an Athletic Subcommittee meeting, said that the subcommittee talked extensively about new programs and initiatives at the high school to encourage students at the middle school to stay in the district.
“We have not done a good job of promoting ourselves, and we have not done a good job of working as hard as the private schools are to keep our kids here,” Hatch said.
Hatch said in the spring, there will be a mandatory meeting in the school auditorium with all potential athletes from the middle school, at which coaches, athletic directors, and administrators will talk about Saugus High School’s offerings for athletics and fine arts.
He mentioned the presence of former Saugus Hall of Fame athletes at the School Committee meeting and the championships the school has won over the years.
“It’s sad that a lot of these students haven’t had the opportunity to see the pride and tradition that is really here in this town,” Hatch said.
Hatch said that the district wants to involve successful athletes at Saugus High who are moving onto the collegiate level in recruiting athletes to stay in the Saugus Public Schools system.
At the subcommittee meeting, Hatch also said members discussed how the district will bring back a full lacrosse program this year, saying the team has 23 athletes now and sign-ups are still open.
Hatch said it is the district’s job to keep its athletes and give them what they need to succeed and play for Saugus High.
“Our current seventh-graders and eighth-graders and our sixth-graders are some of the best athletes that this town has seen in a long time,” he said.
He said that the town has the athletes in town to keep Saugus’ tradition of athletic success going.
The subcommittee, he said, has had many discussions on recruiting the town’s own students.
Committee Vice Chair Tom Whittredge said it always surprises him how private schools can convince parents to pay for their students to play sports there, instead of doing so for free at Saugus High.
“To me, it’s a no-brainer, I don’t know how they sell it to these kids,” Whittredge said.
Whittredge added that the Saugus Middle/High School complex still feels new, and that there isn’t yet a sense of tradition in the building.
He said that the school needs more memorabilia from the town’s history.
“If you walk into the old gym you’re like, ‘OK, I can feel this,’ because there’s banners everywhere,” he said. “I know we’re working on it, but I think we need to move a little faster on it.”
Hatch said that the value of participating in sports is not just about athletics, but the entire experience of being on a team.
