ADVISORY: Senator Hite Tours State to Hear from Ohioans About Fees for Co-Curricular School Activities

COLUMBUS — State Senator Cliff Hite (R-Findlay) will be holding informal public hearings across Ohio on co-curricular school activities as it relates to pay-to-participate fees, student athlete health concerns and school start dates. The hearings will be held in Columbus, Findlay, Cleveland and Dayton during the month of November, and Hite will be joined by other members of the legislature.

"Co-curricular activities are important to the educational and social development of our young people and often give them a pathway to thrive and succeed at school," said Hite, a former educator and coach. "Requiring outrageous fees to participate limits students who might not be afforded those opportunities otherwise."

In addition to discussing the costs of co-curricular school activities, Senator Hite will hear from interested parties and experts on the topics of youth concussions and sudden cardiac arrest, as well as yearly school start dates.

Dates and locations for each hearing are below, and additional details will be forthcoming. For more information, please contact Senator Hite's office at (614) 466-8150 or Hite@OhioSenate.gov.
 

COLUMBUS
Thursday, November 12
2:00 p.m. - 4:00 p.m.
Ohio Statehouse | Grant Hearing Room
1 Capitol Square, Columbus 43215

FINDLAY
Monday, November 16
5:00 p.m. - 7:00 p.m.
University of Findlay | Alumni Memorial Union, Endly Room
225 Frazer Street, Findlay 45840

CLEVELAND
Thursday, November 19
5:00 p.m. - 7:00 p.m.
Lorain County Community College
1005 North Abbe Road, Elyria 44035

DAYTON
Monday, November 23
5:00 p.m. - 7:00 p.m.
Salvation Army Kroc Community Center
1000 North Keowee Street, Dayton 45404

Banning Pay-to-Play Sports

I took notice of an interesting article in the Columbus Dispatch about a new committee being formed by Cliff Hite to look at the possibility of banning "pay-to-play" sports in schools.

Some districts have chosen to implement a fee for student participation in extra-curricular activities including sports and music. For some districts, this is a fine way to deal with exploding budgets and dwindling funds; but in other districts, pay-to-play fees are limiting participation of the less fortunate.

I look forward to hearing what Hite and company come up with as paying for all of these activities is surely going to come up. With the school funding formula fiasco being what it is already, this will surely be controversial.

I'm intrigued and unless something comes up that would cause me to change my mind, at this point I'm a supporter of the idea. It is certainly worth exploring.