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Activities director says Moorhead had an "incredible year" and outlines cost-saving, wellness and equipment changes
Summary
Activities Director Dean Haugwa told the school board the 2024–25 year produced extensive competitive success and described operational changes — centralized laundry for uniforms, transportation scheduling, staffing changes, and a sports performance partnership — intended to save money and improve athlete health and availability.
Dean Haugwa, activities director for Moorhead Area Public Schools, told the board July 21 that the 2024–25 school year was “a really good year” across athletics and fine arts and summarized operational changes intended to improve efficiency, safety and athlete availability.
Haugwa highlighted staff turnover and new hires in the activities department, including an administrative assistant (Melina Wendt) who has taken on transportation scheduling duties, and an equipment manager (Maddie Oliver) who will centralize laundering and uniform care. “We will gain a lifespan on every uniform at Moorhead High of at least one, maybe two years,” Haugwa said, noting that centralized, professional laundering keeps uniforms in school and extends usable life, which saves money on replacement costs.
Haugwa described other service innovations intended to reduce costs and injuries: shifting transportation coordination into activities to find travel savings, reorganizing storage to better preserve equipment, and employing a sports performance specialist, Dr. Kelly Gast, whose work is funded by grants and concession revenues rather than general fund dollars. Haugwa said Dr. Gast provides two sessions per team each season focused on performance preparation, anxiety management and normalizing mental‑health support for student athletes; she also runs coach‑training sessions so coaches better understand Gen Z athletes.
Haugwa credited a partnership with Sanford (athletic development resources) and coach Musselman’s program for improved availability and a lower incidence of soft‑tissue and ACL injuries. He told the board that a group of three high‑impact teams (boys hockey, boys basketball and football) finished seasons without a single lower‑leg soft‑tissue injury among approximately 136 combined athletes — a result Haugwa presented as evidence of successful performance and injury‑prevention work.
Participation numbers and the activities list remained steady, Haugwa said, and he reported no new activities being added this year. He also said the department will be “as lean as we humanly possibly can” in 2025–26 while trying to preserve opportunities for student athletes. Board members asked about logistics and reporting; Haugwa said his office will track academic eligibility and that the department hopes to report back after a year of the new laundry and transportation processes.
