School may hike activities fees

I first started at the Bemidji (Minn.) Pioneer as an intern in the summer of 1996. That would begin six years as a news reporter, sports reporter and copy editor for a small, six-day-per-week daily newspaper in northern Minnesota. I wrote a large range of stories from multiple beats, to features to sports, my favorite being the coverage of the Red Lake Reservation High School basketball team named the Warriors. Here is a collection of my stories from my time at the Pioneer.

April 15, 1997

By Devlyn Brooks

Staff Writer

Bemidji School District students could be facing an increase in activities next year if an Activity Advisory Council plan is accepted by the Bemidji School Board at a May budget workshop.

In the council's plan, according to district Activities Coordinator Jim Mergens, activity fees at both the High School and Middle School would increase $10; fees may be charged for activities that once were free; teachers would no longer receive a free activity pass; and, adult ticket prices at all district events would increase by $1.

The actions were proposed to offset an estimated $15,000 cut which would have been needed in the activities budget to reach a total $800,000 which has been cut districtwide from the 1997-98 district budget.

The "revenue enhancement measures," as the council refers to them, would take effect next year, but it is unknown whether the money raised would stave off current cuts planned for Middle School extracurricular staff. The effort would, however, probably prevent activity staff cuts at the High School, Mergens said.

Under the plan, High School activity fees would be raised from $50 to $60, and Middle School fees would increase from $30 to $40 -- the previous amounts having stayed the same for three years, he said. In addition, any student participating in more than one activity would be charged another $10. The changes are expected to raise a projected $11,000.

The second proposal would charge $10 for activities, such as intramural sports and competitive music programs, that previously were free. Mergens said this would include almost all of the activities that had been free. The move is expected to generate another $4,000.

However, Mergens added that in both cases the most a family would be charged is $120, and that arrangements could be worked out with families facing economic hardships.

The third proposal is to increase adult ticket prices at district events by a $1. That would increase prices from $3 to $4, and is expected to generate more than $6,000.

And finally, the council has suggested the district employees no longer receive free passes to district events, and they instead be offered a year-round $10 activity pass. This is projected to earn about $4,000.

Although the numbers are only projections, Mergens said the Activities Department could be generating an additional $25,000. The money would probably save the High School activities staff from cuts, but Middle School cuts depend upon the amount of money that could be generated with the new proposals.

"Most people seem to be pretty happy that we were able to offset the cuts by raising fees instead of cutting people," Mergens said of the plan.

District Superintendent Rollie Morud said each of the proposals would receive an open discussion at the School Board's first budget workshop scheduled for early May, but most likely any action would be accepted under a completed general budget.

"Some of them I feel more comfortable with than others," Morud said of the proposals. "I wish we didn't have to do any of them, but that's not an option."