ESCANABA---The Escanaba High School girls gymnastics team has spent much of the summer trying to convince the school board to again fund the team's operations.
But at Monday night's school board meeting, there were not enough votes to move forward on the team's request...one way or another.
The gymnastics program was cut in 2009, only to be reinstated before the season began. The program was cut again in 2013 as part of a wider set of district budget cuts. The program returned again in time for its next season, but as a self-funded sport.
"The board reviewed the history of the costs and expenditures," Escanaba Superintendent Michelle LeMire said. "They've been talking about this topic, in depth, since July. Most recently, at our Committee of the Whole meeting, more information was provided."
At Monday night's meeting, two of the seven board members were absent. Another member, Dan Flynn, abstained from voting because of a conflict of interest. Flynn's wife, Karin, has been heavily involved in the gymnastics program, thus, the abstention.
That left four board members able to cast votes on the team's request.
"There was a motion made to fund (the team), and there was a motion made to deny the request," LeMire said. "In each of the two situations, the motion died for lack of enough votes."
So, where does that leave the Eskymo gymnastics team and its funding source?
"At this time, that particular question is off the table," LeMire said. "We'll see what happens in the next few months."
Click the AUDIO thumbnail above to hear LeMire's full comments.
But at Monday night's school board meeting, there were not enough votes to move forward on the team's request...one way or another.
The gymnastics program was cut in 2009, only to be reinstated before the season began. The program was cut again in 2013 as part of a wider set of district budget cuts. The program returned again in time for its next season, but as a self-funded sport.
"The board reviewed the history of the costs and expenditures," Escanaba Superintendent Michelle LeMire said. "They've been talking about this topic, in depth, since July. Most recently, at our Committee of the Whole meeting, more information was provided."
At Monday night's meeting, two of the seven board members were absent. Another member, Dan Flynn, abstained from voting because of a conflict of interest. Flynn's wife, Karin, has been heavily involved in the gymnastics program, thus, the abstention.
That left four board members able to cast votes on the team's request.
"There was a motion made to fund (the team), and there was a motion made to deny the request," LeMire said. "In each of the two situations, the motion died for lack of enough votes."
So, where does that leave the Eskymo gymnastics team and its funding source?
"At this time, that particular question is off the table," LeMire said. "We'll see what happens in the next few months."
Click the AUDIO thumbnail above to hear LeMire's full comments.
