CAYUGA COUNTY -- The Southern Cayuga and Union Springs school districts have had merged sports teams on and off for more than a decade. It's given students the opportunity to get involved in sports like football, swimming, wrestling, and field hockey.
However, now enrollment is declining, and the districts, like many others, are facing financial uncertainty. They're taking a second look at whether the merged sports program should continue in its current form.
The Union Springs Merged Sports Committee has had several meetings on the issue and has decided they would like to continue the merger and possibly even add more sports teams. From that point, the committee will monitor the progress of the teams and let the students choose which sports are the most popular and should continue.
"As times get more difficult, it's even more critical that we share our resources and share our student enrollments," says Union Springs Superintendent Linda Rice. "If we were by ourselves, we could probably offer a portion of what we can right now."
Southern Cayuga Central School District is still considering several different options. Superintendent Mary Kay Worth says enrollment has dropped by about 500 students over the past 15 years. Now, there are about 800 students in the district. She says it's important to find a good balance for the students.
The Southern Cayuga district has discussed several possibilities, including phasing out the merger or eliminating some less popular sports teams. Worth says it's important to regroup and figure out the best decision to make, considering the district's current size. She says the schools have had trouble getting enough students to play on some teams.
"We really have had to start asking questions. When is the right time to merge? When is not the right time to merge, and can we really sustain the opportunities we've been giving kids over a period of years?" says Worth.
Rice says she would like to get both school boards together to discuss the future of the merger sometime in January.
