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Parents, students and coaches press Temecula Valley Unified to keep girlsfield hockey after district phases program out
Summary
Students, parents and coaches from multiple high schools told the Temecula Valley Unified School District Board on Feb. 25 that planned cuts to girlsfield hockey would remove a rare team opportunity and hurt college prospects, and asked the board and district to explore alternatives ahead of a March 10 follow-up meeting.
Dozens of players, parents and coaches from Chaparral, Temecula Valley and Great Oak high schools and from Rancho Vista brought the packed public comment period at the Temecula Valley Unified School District board meeting on Feb. 25 to urge the district to preserve girlsfield hockey.
The students and parents said the program is growing, creates strong bonds and gives several athletes a realistic path to collegiate play. "The bonds the team creates are wild," said Ella Carter, a junior and varsity player at Chaparral High School. "Cutting the team would take away opportunities for girls who have worked to improve and who already play club and year-round."
Why it matters: Speakers said field hockey provides an alternative athletic pathway for girls who do not want to play soccer or flag football, and that several players on affected teams maintain high GPAs while committing many off-season hours to club play and private lessons. Parents and coaches also said the teams raise private funds and rely heavily on parent transportation, not district-paid buses for most contests.
Students described rising participation. "Temecula Valley High School field hockey has about 45 to 50 members," said Kendall Gann, a sophomore at TVHS. "Multiple girls on my team want to play college field hockey, and without high school exposure that chance would drop substantially." Great Oak captain Fiona, who has played four years, said the program rebounded from a post-COVID low of about 15 players and now draws freshmen from a local middle-school feeder program.
Parents and coaches offered operational details and fundraising options. Mandy Lorellis, a parent at Great Oak, said the Great Oak program raised about $11,000 last season and that most travel to regular-season games was handled by parents; the district provided transportation to three Orange County contests. Chaparral head coach Brian Carter said the three nearby high school programs have increased participation in recent years and he believes unified local scheduling could reduce travel and transportation costs.
District response and next steps: Board President Dr. Melinda Anderson acknowledged the concerns and, with trustees Dr. Joseph Komrovsky and Dr. Gary Woods, scheduled a longer public meeting on March 10 to take more testimony from students, parents, coaches and administrators. "We want to hear the parents and coaches and examine solutions," Anderson said; she emphasized the March 10 session would allow more time than the nightof public comment and that no further action would be taken that evening. Superintendent Gary Woods and athletic staff said they would provide information to the board about enrollment, transportation costs and any district constraints.
What the speakers asked the board to consider: keep existing high school teams, explore local scheduling/district-wide league options to limit travel, permit volunteer or parent-led transport arrangements, and explore targeted fundraising or other budget tweaks to preserve the current programs. Several parents offered to help with fundraising and logistics.
Ending: Board members agreed to hear full testimony and additional information at a March 10 meeting set aside specifically for the issue; the board did not take any immediate vote to change programs that night.
