Gateway board approves multiple no-cost club proposals including girls wrestling

The Gateway School District board approved several co-curricular club proposals and curricular items during its recent meeting, including a newly proposed girls wrestling club at Gateway High School.

John Hall presented the girls wrestling proposal, telling the board the sport is one of the fastest-growing in the country and that outreach this fall attracted roughly 18 students to an initial information meeting with about 8 attending the first practice; Hall said about 10 students remained committed. He said practice started the week of Nov. 14 and that competition season would begin in December. He described the girls program as operating at first as a booster-club-funded activity (the same model used for other extracurricular clubs), which would require parent-led fundraising and would be designed to be no cost to the district.

The board also approved co-curricular proposals for a culture cooking club and a badminton club at Gateway High School, noted as no-cost to the district. Additional approved items in Section 7 included placing a precalculus resource on 30-day public display, an MOU pilot with Lincoln, Title IV-funded subscription and security training, an Invention Land LLC license for an innovation course and authorization for the intermediate unit to provide Title I services for nonpublic schools. Board members asked practical questions about space scheduling for badminton, fee structures for facility use and deposit amounts for outside groups using district fields; presenters confirmed existing fee elements (lights, site manager and custodial fees when applicable) and that recent Atlantic Coast Baseball use included a $5,000 deposit.

Personnel items tied to Section 6 were approved in the same meeting, including recognition of a resignation and multiple new hires and volunteer approvals (including three volunteers for the girls wrestling program). A contract amendment (Item 6.2) that staff said would cost the district approximately $10,000 drew one recorded dissenting vote during roll call but otherwise passed as part of the personnel package.

What happens next: The girls wrestling club will operate under booster funding while district staff monitor participation and scheduling. The board asked staff to manage facility schedules across schools so new clubs can find practice space without burdening existing programs.