Sartell-St. Stephen athletic director outlines Minnesota State High School League changes, participation trends and conference shifts

Eric Martin, Sartell-St. Stephen School District athletic director, updated the school board on changes from the Minnesota State High School League (MSHSL), participation figures across sports and activities, and adjustments to the Central Lakes Conference that will affect scheduling and competitive classification.

Martin said the MSHSL’s recent change to include ninth graders in governance and catastrophic medical and concussion coverage is a major shift for member schools. "This would allow all ninth grade participants valuable insurance coverage in the event of injury or concussion," Martin said, adding that the change will require action from member schools and further information from the league in 2024–25.

The change matters because MSHSL classification and many rules are based on enrollment and participation in grades 9 through 12. Martin explained that member schools are classified by 9–12 enrollment and a calculation that counts 40% of a school’s students qualifying for free or reduced-price lunch. Those figures determine class placement in most sports and activities.

Because the district’s 9–12 enrollment placed it near the lower edge of its previous classification, Sartell-St. Stephen moved down in most sports. Martin said the district will remain at a higher class in some sports — for example, football remains in the 5A/6-class range — but sports such as soccer, basketball, hockey, baseball, softball, swim and dive and dance will compete at a lower class for the coming cycle.

Martin described one specific outcome of the classification and petition process: girls hockey. The district successfully petitioned to play in Class A for two years despite enrollment numbers that would otherwise have placed it higher. Martin said the petition considered participation numbers and competitive balance: "Unfortunately, our low numbers right now in girls hockey ... our competitive level where we've been the last couple years has not been where we wanted it to."

Conference composition also is changing. Detroit Lakes was placed into the Central Lakes Conference by the league this past year after being rejected by other conferences, Martin said. Bemidji and other schools have applied or may apply to join; if a school is not accepted by a conference it may ultimately be placed by the league. Martin described the practical impact: travel and scheduling will require adjustments, and the conference has moved to playing most opponents once instead of twice to accommodate expansion.

Martin reviewed co-op arrangements and host-school roles: Sartell-St. Stephen co-ops with Sauk Rapids for boys lacrosse (host school Sartell) and for girls lacrosse (host Sauk Rapids); girls hockey and Nordic ski arrangements include cooperation with Cathedral and participation through area youth programs; Alpine ski students participate via St. Cloud Technical College for some events.

Participation counts varied widely by sport. Martin said girls swim and dive had about 56 participants this year — one of the largest rosters in school history — while girls hockey had only 11 students in grades 9–12 last year but is expected to grow to "30 to 32" for the coming year as youth programs and community outreach feed into the high school program. Dance roster numbers fell to about 10 but the coach opened the program to eighth graders to augment numbers. The district also added a junior varsity robotics team made of seventh- and eighth-graders and sent students to national robotics events.

Martin highlighted non-athletic activities and student leadership programs the conference sponsors, including monthly conference discussions about sportsmanship and a September student leadership initiative that brought roughly 30–40 students together for interactive sessions on mental toughness and leadership.

On facilities and community support, Martin noted the Yoland Chevrolet Clubhouse — a community-funded indoor practice facility for golf — opened at the start of the season, and that the district raised about $10,000 in each of the past two years through a tackle-cancer fundraiser that benefitted the Randy Shaver and TriUnity Foundation campaigns.

Martin closed by summarizing that, while a few programs face low numbers, the district’s overall activity participation is healthy and that the conference and league-level changes will require continued attention to scheduling, travel and co-op agreements.