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Parents and athletic director ask board to approve girls lacrosse club at Brady Middle
Summary
Athletic director Dave Offerers and parent organizer Steve Gary requested board acknowledgment of a girls lacrosse club at Brady Middle School; organizers cited strong parental support and roughly two dozen interested players and described a three‑year plan toward sustainability and possible competitive status.
The Orange City School District Board of Education on Jan. 9 heard a presentation asking the district to recognize a girls lacrosse club at Brady Middle School and to support parent volunteers in organizing practices and games.
Athletic Director Dave Offerers introduced a parent volunteer, Steve Gary, who said about 24–25 girls have signed up and parents have been working to establish a feeder program into the high school. Gary described lacrosse as “a beautiful game” and said it is less physical and more strategy oriented than some other sports, which can attract students who have not found a fit in traditional spring sports.
Board members and staff discussed the club process. District staff explained a club does not require a board vote to begin; a vote would be required only if the club moves to become a competitive school sport that requires additional coaching positions or district-paid staffing. The district described the typical pathway as a multi-year effort to demonstrate sustained interest — the presenters used a three-year horizon as the common measure to show sustainability before advancing to full-school-sport status.
Board members expressed support for creating feeder programs while asking staff and organizers to monitor enrollment impacts on other spring offerings such as softball and track. A board member asked for participation numbers for existing spring sports; staff said they would provide the data so the board can evaluate the effect of adding a new club on student participation across programs.
Organizers noted they have reached out to nearby programs for match-ups and plan to connect middle-school players with high-school mentors. The district and organizers said they would coordinate logistics such as practices, schedules and potential games with schools that already field girls lacrosse teams.
No formal motion or vote to authorize a competitive team was taken; the board was asked to acknowledge and support the formation of a parent-led club and to receive updates if the program seeks to transition to an official school sport in future years.
