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Committee debates requiring improvement plans for students to keep extracurricular eligibility
Summary
The policy committee discussed proposed regulations for Policy 54-11 to tie athletics and performing-arts eligibility to attendance, behavior, and academic improvement plans; members favored a required student-improvement plan and use of Empire funds for tutoring but warned about funding sustainability.
The Newburgh City School District Policy Committee spent the bulk of the meeting discussing proposed regulations to Policy 54-11, which governs student eligibility for athletics, performing arts and other extracurricular activities.
Miss Peterson said the policy aims to emphasize attendance, academic progress and behavior while preserving access: "The most important thing is being in school daily," she said. The committee discussed how the policy interacts with promotion rules and graduation-credit requirements and whether to require participation in supports for students who fall short.
Mister Herrera proposed using existing Empire funds to provide tutors and a coordinator to ensure participation and outreach to families: "Maybe using some of the programs we already have, like, like, Empire could be the support system to allocate, teachers as tutors..." He suggested making participation in a structured support program a condition of eligibility and noted that if such services cannot be provided within current programs, budget changes would be required.
Board members repeatedly cautioned against immediately punitive "mandatory" measures that would reduce participation; Mister Bergarelli and others favored a documented student-improvement plan that is mandatory to follow but that focuses first on providing supports and teacher follow-up rather than automatic removal from activities. Members also discussed that the district's 4.5-credit benchmark for sophomore standing is distinct from the 22-credit requirement for graduation and noted existing summer recovery opportunities.
Miss Peterson said she will work with Doctor So, Missus Johnson and Mister Herrera to draft a regulation and a student-improvement-plan template for the board's next meeting and will secure Doctor Manning Campbell's approval before distribution.
