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Athletic director outlines program growth, staffing strains and field study results
Summary
The district’s athletic director reported program expansion to 34 offerings and 77 teams, staffing and space pressures, rising uniform and event costs, and a facilities field study that estimates more than $2 million to renovate or add fields.
Tappan Zee High School’s athletic director, Mr. Pilla, briefed the board on a steady expansion in interscholastic offerings, ongoing staffing challenges and facility constraints that the district is weighing as it considers capital and operating needs.
Pilla said the district now offers 34 athletic programs and fields about 77 teams across modified through varsity levels — "one of the most in Section 1," he said — and listed recently added programs, including JV competitive cheerleading, girls golf, gymnastics, girls ice hockey, boys volleyball, girls flag football and freshman girls basketball. He told the board the district hosts and schedules many events: athletic staff schedule more than 500 trips a year, manage facilities and coordinate officials and security, and that much of the work takes place outside standard school hours.
The sport schedule and facility use create "a great problem to have," Pilla said, but he said the volume has strained staff and logistics. He urged adding full‑time FTE within the athletic office to manage increased work, and said recruiting and retaining qualified coaches is increasingly difficult. He praised the district’s athletic trainer and noted that some districts expand medical coverage beyond a single athletic trainer; he recommended the board consider coverage in budgeting.
Facility needs and capital planning also drew attention. A facilities committee summary in the meeting packet and the athletic director’s remarks referred to a Clark Patterson Lee (CPL) field study performed in 2020. The study’s recommendations — and further quotes the facilities committee is obtaining — include multipurpose field renovations and new practice fields. The facilities committee noted field construction costs would likely exceed $2,000,000.
Pilla also discussed trending costs for uniforms and event management, and said the district’s streaming services and video‑board investments have improved coverage and community access. He described intramurals as a pathway for launching new interscholastic programs (for example, downhill ski intramurals being piloted for potential team formation).
Ending: The athletic director asked the board to consider staffing additions, continued investment in facilities planning and the field‑study breakdown expected from the district’s architect. The facilities committee said it would return with more detailed quotes and recommendations for what to include in capital or operating budgets.
