Lucy Lopshire
Disparities are apparent in sports funding Lucy Lopshire
When people think of high school sports, the first one that comes to mind is football. It is a common viewpoint that the American sport has become the main recipient of money throughout high schools across the country. Therefore, people perceive an unbalanced distribution of money that leaves other sports overlooked and underfunded. Especially here at Carlmont, students and coaches alike have voiced their concerns about allocating money. Different sports teams have various needs and desires depending on the resources available to them. With most students not knowing how
this system works, there is a widespread misconception that football receives most of the funding at Carlmont. When breaking down how money is spent, it can often reflect that idea. According to Patrick Smith, the athletic director at Carlmont, a portion of the district budget goes towards reconditioning football equipment each year. “We get $60,000, usually about $45,000 goes to transportation. The rest of that money is used on equipment, but usually, that is eaten up by reconditioning of football equipment. All football helmets and shoulder pads have to be reconditioned every year; that’s a state law.” Smith said. Smith works closely with coaches and the Booster Club to get teams the
funding they need. The Booster Club is a parent-run organization that works to generate funds for Carlmont through events such as fundraisers. The club is heavily involved in athletics and provides most of the money used for the sports program. The process for funding at Carlmont starts when coaches ask Smith for specific needs, which he then compares with the budget and communicates to the Booster Club. Within this process, he works alongside Joe Kupbens, who has been the Booster Board president for two years. Kupbens deals with fundraising, allocating funds, and more. “The way it works is the coaches come to Pat and say, ‘this is what I need this year.’ Then we just discuss
18 HIGHLANDER SPORTS
