It will cost more to play school sports next year for Everett and Edmonds students and more high school athletes will have to find their own transportation to games.
The Everett School District is adding pay-to-play fees while the Edmonds School District plans to raise fees already in place.
"This time around, with the significant cuts to school district budgets around the state, the only way we could keep our full middle-school and high-school programs would be to raise fees," Everett School District athletic director Robert Polk said.
The Everett School Board approved the fees at its June 9 meeting, which will be $75 per sport (with a limit of $150) for high-school athletes, and $25 per sport for middle-school athletes (with a limit of $75).
The Edmonds School District plans to raise its fees from $40 to $100 for high-school athletes and from $20 to $40 for middle-school athletes.
Meanwhile, transportation will also be pared back in Edmonds.
Edmonds has cut back transportation in the past and already does not provide busing to some games for athletes, letting parents and students know at the start of the season for which games they'll have to find transportation. But next year there will be more scaling back. Up to $124,000 in cuts are likely to middle-school practice buses and transportation to varsity games that start after 4 p.m.
"There will be some reduction in transportation for sure," Edmonds School District Athletic Director Jan Beglau said.
The Edmonds School Board saved $224,000 from being cut out of the athletic budget at its June 2 meeting, saving programs such as swimming and golf as well as coaching positions. In the meantime, a committee of parents, students, staff members and coaches are examining the budget and determining what else can be saved.
