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Athletic director reviews combined‑team agreements, proposes new modified and JV teams to retain student participation
Summary
Athletics staff reviewed the district’s history of combining teams under New York guidance, reported detailed participation rosters across fall and winter sports, and proposed adding several modified/JV teams (boys basketball B team, West modified B volleyball, winter cheer demerge) to reduce cuts and improve development.
The board received an extended briefing on the district’s combined athletics programs and the process used under New York’s combining-of-schools rules. The presenter said districts may combine teams for three reasons: to support emerging sports, to respond to declining participation, or for financial reasons. The presenter said the section (the ECIC/Erie County League and the section committee) and the league must approve any combination and that the combining is typically granted for one year with end-of-season reporting required.
Athletics staff presented participation numbers by school and level for fall and winter sports, and highlighted several trends: girls field hockey participation from East has fallen, girls swimming has higher numbers from East than West, and some modified teams have grown enough to warrant separate West and East squads. Based on current and recent rosters, staff proposed de‑merging winter modified cheer (high participation), adding a West modified B girls volleyball team, adding a B team for boys basketball, and piloting a 7–8–9 modified girls flag‑football squad if regional rules permit. Staff noted transportation and identity concerns for combined teams, and said the district has tried to alternate practice and game sites and purchase team-specific uniforms for combined squads. The presenter also urged the league and section to consider competitiveness-based scheduling rather than strictly BEDS-number classification to preserve participation and competitive balance.
The board asked staff to provide follow-up data on: the number of students who register for a sport but do not show up to tryouts, the count of students in out-of-district private schools who do not enroll in West Seneca high school programs, and more detailed rosters by grade. Staff agreed to return that data and said some emergency combinations can be requested midseason if participation suddenly falls.
