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Student urges girls' wrestling program; board asks staff to gather numbers and logistics
Summary
A Millbrook High junior and family urged the board to add a VHSL‑sanctioned girls' wrestling program. The superintendent said the district supports women's sports but cited timing and budget constraints; the board asked staff to collect participation and logistics information for discussion at the upcoming retreat.
A Millbrook High School junior urged the Frederick County School Board on Oct. 21 to establish a sanctioned girls' wrestling team, prompting board members and staff to agree to gather participation numbers, logistics and cost estimates to determine whether the program can start this season.
Amaya Shook, who identified herself as a junior wrestler at Millbrook, said girls need a dedicated program and coach to train in a comfortable, same‑sex environment: “Having a girls' team gives the benefit of girls working with other girls to gain confidence without judgment by male counterparts.” Her father, Keith Shook, said a July proposal to create a countywide girls' team with one dedicated coach had been denied; he urged the board to revisit the proposal so students could have an inaugural season.
Superintendent Dr. Hummer said the division supports girls' wrestling and had planned to consider the sport in the FY27 process, but the timing of VHSL sanctioning and the district's budget calendar made immediate adoption difficult. He said the primary constraints are timing, transportation and operating funds, and suggested staff would assemble numbers on interested athletes and neighboring divisions that have added the sport.
Board members asked staff to gather specific data quickly. Board members and staff cited roughly 13 interested girls countywide and said the district would check whether nearby divisions are fielding girls' teams and what travel that would require. A board member estimated uniform-related costs—if the program expanded—could run in the low tens of thousands: “Those uniforms are typically 20 to $40,000,” a member said during the discussion.
Options discussed included accelerating the review to see if the sport could be added for the season, starting as a club to provide coaching access in the near term, or incorporating the sport into the FY27 operating budget. The board's retreat later in the week was identified as the next opportunity to review preliminary numbers; the board did not authorize immediate implementation at the Oct. 21 meeting.
