Letter to the editor: Local School Board is too negative on plan for athletics

After reading the article in the paper about the plan for hiring someone to help our student-athletes become more competitive and successful people, I was very disappointed by some of the comments made by Jamestown Public School Board members.

While we may never have the numbers like a Fargo or Bismarck school, that doesn’t mean our student-athletes don’t deserve to be given the chance to become better. Why should they have to settle for anything less? What does that say to our students?

I can speak firsthand from my son’s experience with the speed-enhancement program at the college. He did that for three summers and I know it made him a better athlete. Not all families are in a financial position to do that and having it available in our school system would be a huge benefit to all athletes.

We don’t have control over our population or who chooses to participate, but we can have control over whether we want to give our students the best opportunities to be successful in athletics, music and fine arts.

I am all for exploring all options available but to say “get over it” is like a slap in the face to our students. They all deserve better than that.

We stay updated with technology, etc. in the classrooms and it would be a benefit if we could get our athletic programs up to speed also. Shouldn’t we strive to be the best Jamestown we can be?

Penny Gengler

Jamestown

Tags: opinion, letters, education, athletics, sports, jamestown