Ross athletics posts multiple championships; director flags NIL, funding and participation trends

Justin Beck, director of school athletics for Ross Local School District, told the Board of Education that the 2024–25 school year was “absolutely a year to remember for the Ross Athletic Department and the Ross Local School District as a whole.” Beck delivered the recap during the school board’s public meeting and outlined program goals for 2025–26.

Beck said Ross teams won six state championships and five league titles during 2024–25, and that the district earned three district championships in a single year for the first time in school history. He also noted a team finished as state runner-up in swimming and listed individual awards, including multiple coaches and athletes of the year and 34 first-team all-league recipients in sports that use that designation.

The presentation focused on two trends: participation and external policy changes that could affect high-school athletics. Beck said total participation in Ross athletics is on an upward trend after a sharp drop when participation fees rose in 2023, and he highlighted middle-school track increasing from 48 to 70 participants as an example. He added that more student-athletes are choosing club sports over interscholastic teams but that Ross’s numbers are improving.

Beck also identified three policy and market pressures he said the district is monitoring: name/image/likeness rules (NIL) at the high-school level, expanding school-choice voucher programs, and a broader “arms race” in facilities and programming.

“NIL is coming to high school,” Beck said, noting that “41 out of 50 of our states have already adopted this NIL model” and warning that Ohio and Indiana currently had not. He said Ohio’s previous proposal would have made the athletic director the agent for student-athlete contracts and that models vary widely across states.

Board members asked about fees, uniforms and operations. Beck said the current participation-fee pattern discussed in the meeting was $300 for a sport and that alternate uniforms are typically funded by individual teams’ fundraising. He described a roughly five-year replacement cycle for primary uniforms while alternates come from team funds.

Board member Young praised the athletics staff’s workload and availability, saying, “Justin’s 7 days a week, and I don't say that, in tongue and cheek.” Board member Kleinfelter expressed concern about NIL and transfer-portal effects, saying the changes “have ruined college sports” and that he worries similar pressures will reach the high-school level.

Beck closed by listing departmental goals for the upcoming year: strengthen in-season lifting programs, grow leadership within programs, better tell the department’s story through web and social channels, and navigate financial uncertainties tied to state funding. He also thanked coaching and support staff and encouraged the community to attend the district’s True Strength Night on Jan. 16, 2026.

The presentation was for information; no formal action or vote was taken on athletics matters at the meeting.