Parents make pitch for school funding of swimming

Hungry Horse News

Columbia Falls could soon financially support its swim team.

The School District 6 board last week heard an impassioned pitch by parents for the district to give funding support for the program, which has about 24 athletes each season.

Columbia Falls and Whitefish each created teams back in 2014. They compete separately, but they share coaches and they practice together at The Wave in Whitefish.

When they first started, the board approved the team, but without any school funding outside of the time of the Columbia Falls Activities Director puts in.

This year it cost about $16,000, or just under $700 per athlete to field the Columbia Falls team.

Those expenses were covered through fundraising efforts by the team. The athletes don’t have to “pay to play” as long as they help out with fundraising, noted parent and organizer Lisa McKeon.

Since swimming started eight year ago, the boys team has placed in the top three four times at the state A championship meet, including a state title in 2015-16.

“Swimming is a life sport,” McKeon noted. “It’s good for mental and physical health.”

The school board as of late has been voting to support more extracurricular activities. For example, last fall it approved funding junior high soccer, which proved to be very successful in its first year. With school funding of swimming, the team would likely add more athletes.

The swimming budget is relatively low, compared to other sports. Football, for example, costs about $54,000 and track $48,000 annually, though they do serve more athletes.

The board will vote on the swim team funding proposal at its next meeting.