LR School Boards approve changes for upcoming year: Vote for Washtucna to join athletic co-op, hiring high school principal

The Lind and Ritzville School Boards unanimously agreed to allow Washtucna School District athletes to participate in Lind-Ritzville/Sprague athletics.

The discussion began earlier in the month when representatives from the Lind, Ritzville and Washtucna school boards met to discuss the possibility of an athletic cooperative.

During the monthly meeting of the Lind and Ritzville School Boards on April 25, the board members agreed to extend a one-year trial for Washtucna students to participate in all sports.

Washtucna approached Lind-Ritzville Superintendent Rob Roettger about the possibility of discussing the cooperative in March.

The Washtucna School District remains in the athletic cooperative with LaCrosse and Kahlotus, but LaCrosse School District advised they are now participating in select sports with St. John–Endicott instead.

Because of the change in the athletic cooperative with the Tigercats, and with low numbers of students, Washtucna expressed interest in joining the Broncos. This is the second time Washtucna has approached LRS about the possibility of an athletic cooperative. The first occurred last year prior to the fall sports season, when the Tigercats did not have enough athletes to make a football team.

At that time, the Ritzville School Board voted against having the Washtucna athletes join LRS for the single season. During the meeting on April 25, the board members said the prior decision had to do with a lack of information and uncertainties.

With the board members meeting prior to the decision, the Lind and Ritzville School Boards felt more comfortable voting on the topic.

Roettger said after last year’s decision to decline for Washtucna to join for a season, he had regrets about turning the athletes away.

He advised his recommendation for this year was to complete a trial run on a sport-by-sport basis with Washtucna, giving LRS an opportunity to adjust and see if the cooperative could work.

LRS Athletic Director Greg Whitmore echoed Roettger’s statement, saying he did not like to turn any student away from an extracurricular activity. Whitmore said while it increases his workload, it also allows an opportunity to provide students with strong athletic programs.

Whitmore added all of the LRS coaches have voiced their support for the athletic cooperative. He also emphasized many schools have watched what LRS has been able to do with their athletic cooperative, and truly are leaders in the state when it comes to combining programs.

As a leader, Whitmore said LRS knew other teams would be coming to them in the future, asking for a cooperative. The Lind-Ritzville School District is centrally located, and with the growing success of the athletic programs, schools are beginning to pay attention, Whitmore said.

The school board members discussed the pros and cons of the cooperative, as well as how long of trial LRS would like to offer.

Lind School Board Chairman Rena Wahl recommended a full one-year trial for all sports. This would guarantee all athletes in Washtucna would have an opportunity to participate in a sport through the LRS program.

Whitmore said the agreement will need to be negotiated, and the athletic cooperative contract already needs to be updated. The boards agreed many of the requirements, such the differences in eligibility standards and the school calendar, would take time for the Washtucna School District to adjust to.

Roettger explained the addition of the Washtucna student-athletes would not change the 2B classification for LRS.

There would also not be a change to the mascot, or to any of the team’s names, he explained.

The school board members unanimously agreed a one-year trial is a good start before looking to long-term commitment. The boards voted separately, with no board members opposed to the motion.

Also during the meeting, Roettger discussed the possibility of a change in the administration responsibilities between the two districts. Roettger laid out a proposal for the board to maintain Cindy Deska’s position as Lind School District Principal, while moving current Ritzville School District Principal Tom Arlt into a dual role.

Roettger explained Arlt would serve as the Ritzville Grade School Principal, and would also work on State and Federal Programs for both the Lind and Ritzville School Districts. This would mean the creation of a Lind-Ritzville High School principal position.

The district could afford the addition of the position since the cost would be split between both school districts, Roettger said, and the Lind-Ritzville Cooperative School District needs to make changes if the district wants to progress.

Roettger advised the district could potentially hire at the end of May to have the new principal in place by next school year.

Both school boards verbally agreed to the addition of the new position, while also adjusting Arlt’s position for the betterment of the schools.