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Public speaker urges refund after cheerleading dues paid for non-enrolled student at Shaw High
Summary
At the April 14 board work session a Muscogee County resident, Diana Lakes, asked the board to help secure an $800 refund she paid for a child's cheerleading dues when the child was later found not to be assigned to Shaw High. Principal Dr. Hendricks and booster club leadership said they offered $275 and that many items were already purchased or
A Muscogee County resident told the School Board at its April 14 work session she had paid $800 in cheerleading dues on Aug. 5 to keep a child eligible to participate, then discovered the child was not assigned to Shaw High School and has not received a full refund.
Diana Lakes told the board she paid the fee to a coach by Apple Pay after being told Aug. 5 was the deadline; she said she believed the student was assigned to Shaw at that point. Lakes said the booster club and coach later told her only $275 could be refunded because many items had been purchased and several were already monogrammed.
"I paid him as a good Samaritan, but he came back to backfire me," Lakes said, asking the board to help recover the remaining funds.
Shaw High principal Dr. Hendricks responded that the students in question had been listed with affidavits in prior years but were later reassigned to their home school after the registrar verified an address on Doyle Avenue in the Kindred zone. Dr. Hendricks said the booster club followed its contract, which she said stated there would be no refunds, and that many items were purchased and some were monogrammed. She said the school issued a check for $275 and that unsold, non-monogrammed items remain in the school's office and could be sold to recoup additional funds; she estimated the items might recover about $500.
Booster club leadership and the principal said they had documentation, including registration deadlines, payment records and text messages, and that purchases for the team had already been spent on other student needs. Dr. Hendricks told the board the booster club was following its procedures.
Board members thanked Lakes for stepping up on behalf of the student and asked Lakes to provide contact information to district staff. The board did not resolve the issue in open session; board members said Superintendent Dr. David Lewis would follow up. One board member urged that district staff treat Lakes as a "good Samaritan" when considering any discretionary relief.
The transcript records no formal board vote; the board directed staff to follow up and asked Lakes to provide contact information to Ms. Jones so Dr. Lewis could review the facts and pursue a remedy if appropriate.
