OHSAA Returns To School Membership Dues To Sustain Income Needs

May 4, 2021 Mike Smith

Presented By McDonald’s, I’m Lovin’ It!

(COLUMBUS) – The Ohio High School Athletic Association Board of Directors has approved a recommendation from OHSAA Executive Director Doug Ute that membership dues be collected beginning with the 2021-22 school year. The measure, approved by a 9-0 vote by the Board on Monday, means each high school will contribute $50 per OHSAA sanctioned sport in which the school participates.

“First, I want to thank our Board of Directors for unanimously approving my recommendation,” Ute said. “I also have received favorable feedback from the majority of the administrators with whom I have conversed at our member schools. Levying membership dues does not change our mission, which is to serve our member schools and enrich interscholastic opportunities for students.

“We traditionally have relied on tournament ticket sales for about 80 percent of our revenue,” Ute explained. “That financial model has not been sustainable, and the COVID-19 pandemic has certainly not helped. Levying membership dues will give us a steady line of income since many of our other lines are variable, and it will help us build a new, more sustainable revenue model. That model, which will help ensure our long-term sustainability, will be a combination of a wider variety of income streams – including these dues – and continued better management of our expenses.”

Total dues for the 2021-22 school year will range from $300 per school to $1,300, depending on the number of OHSAA-sanctioned sports in which a school is participating. The dues will be reviewed annually by an OHSAA Finance Committee and any modifications will be recommended to the Board by the executive director. In the future, dues will not exceed $100 per sport.

Levying dues means:

· Member schools will no longer pay any tournament entry fees, bowling lineage fees, golf green fees or wrestling weight management fees. The membership due is all-inclusive.

· Student scholarships will be reinstated during the 2021-22 school year.

· Student catastrophic insurance coverage for all student-athletes, cheerleaders, student managers and student athletic trainers during in-season and OHSAA tournament practices and contests will continue to be provided at no cost to member schools.

· OHSAA will continue to supply all team trophies and/or individual medals for champions, runners-up and other selected place-winners at the district, regional and state level.

· OHSAA will continue to supply rule books, sport manuals, online rules meeting presentations plus other publications and tournament administrator passes at no cost to member schools.

· OHSAA will continue to pay high school fees for ArbiterGame accounts.

· No membership dues will be levied against member 7^th-8^th grade schools.

“We will continue to be open and transparent with our member schools about our financial situation,” Ute said. “If we are able to adjust dues in the future, we will look to do so. I want to sincerely thank all of our school administrators for their work and efforts in helping to provide participation opportunities for our student-athletes during these uncertain times, and we appreciate the support they have given us in continuing to conduct our tournaments.”

The Board previously was presented information on membership dues during both the regularly scheduled February 18 and April 22 Board of Directors meetings. Ute also hosted in three virtual meetings April 5 and 13 with member school administrators to discuss dues and OHSAA finances in general. In addition, member school administrators recently received the following memo to further explain dues and OHSAA finances: https://ohsaaweb.blob.core.windows.net/files/SchoolResources/2021MembershipDues.pdf

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Deadline Approaches For Feast Of Flowering Moon Pageant Applications

May 4, 2021 Mike Smith

Presented By Atomic Speedway

The Feast of the Flowering Moon application deadline is May 10th for contestants wanting to enter the Princess and Queen Pageants. Contestants to these pageants must live within Ross County.

The Queen Contest will be for girls ages 15 to 17 and The Princess Pageant will have five different age groups: Baby Miss (ages 3 – 4) Petite Miss (ages 5 – 6) Little Miss (ages 7 – 8) Junior Miss (ages 9 – 11) Teen Miss (ages 12 – 14).

The Princess Pageant will take place on Saturday, May 22nd at the Majestic Theatre beginning at 11am. Each age group will have a specific timeframe for their age group as a COVID-19 precaution. Each age group will be taken to the stage where our emcee will ask each contestant questions from their application. The three girls placing on the court from each age group will be named following the pageant.

The formal pageant for the Queens Contest will take place Saturday, May 22nd at 1pm to allow for graduation ceremonies later in the day. During this portion of the pageant, the contestants will be dressed in their formal gowns while answering questions from our emcee for the judges. The contestants placing on the Queen’s Court will be announced following the pageant.

Each age group will have a Princess and two attendants to fill their court. The Queen’s Court will be composed of a Queen and two attendants. Contestant placement will be announced at the main stage on Friday, May 28th at the festival where they will receive their sashes and crowns.

Applications and entry fee must be received by the festival no later than May 10th. Envelopes that are postmarked for May 10th will be accepted. Applications can also be obtained and turned in at the Ross-Chillicothe Convention & Visitors Bureau at 230 North Plaza Blvd. Contestants will receive instructions on the pageant upon receipt of these items.

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Big Brothers/Big Sisters Goes Virtual In “Bowl For Kids Sake” Fundraiser

May 4, 2021 Mike Smith

Presented By Hometown-Motors, Inc.

The Annual Bowl For Kids’ Sake Fundraiser, benefitting Big Brothers Big Sisters of South Central Ohio will be virtual this year.

Anyone can participate with generally, people participating as a Team of 5 and work towards setting goals and fundraising both individually and collectively as a team. (There are individual and team prizes)

You can participate as a team with friends, family, co-workers, youth or church groups, as a 4-H Club, etc.

Fundraising starts now and is scheduled to end on June 5th, 2021. You can fundraise for this event virtually, or opt to collect donations in-person by using one of our traditional Bowl For Kids’ Sake donation forms.

On June 5th, BBBS will have a Team Celebration Day at the Lion’s Shelter in Yoctangee Park. Participants can turn in the money they have raised as well as pick up their t-shirts and prizes. They will also have games and will be passing out free food to participants.

All proceeds from this event will stay local and help us support Ross, Pike, Pickaway, Fayette and Highland Counties.

Big Brothers/Big Sisters of South Central Ohio serves children and families who live in at-risk situations, by providing evidence-based prevention services, life skills training, taking the children on fun and educational outings, and of course, by providing one-to-one mentoring services within the community and various school districts.

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COSI Science Festival Gets Assist From Pickaway County Library & OSU Extension

May 4, 2021 Mike Smith

Presented By Classic Brands

COSI Science Festival is virtual for the second year. This year Pickaway County Library & OSU Extension will help COSI team members put together a Rube Goldberg machine, a simple machine that does a simple task in a complicated way.

Please register to join the fun on May 6th at 6pm – go.clcohio.org/SciFest2021.

To work virtually alongside the team members, here are some suggested materials for your Rube Goldberg machine:

Book, Yarn or cotton string, Paper clip, 2 Rulers or one ruler and one piece of plastic car track, Large cylinder like oatmeal container or coffee can, Plastic or styrofoam cup, lightweight shallow container that can fit on one end of your second larger ruler, Small ball-like ping pong ball Dominoes or small wooden blocks, Toy car or truck, Tissue box, TapeSmall flat rock or magnet circles for counterweight.

See all the library’s virtual offerings at pickawaylib.org.

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Ohio University Building Virtual Reality Initiative To Train Law Enforcement

May 4, 2021 Mike Smith

Presented By Rathkamp Financial

(ATHENS) – Ohio University’s Voinovich Academy for Excellence in Public Service, a program of Ohio University’s Voinovich School of Leadership and Public Affairs, is building a new initiative to improve law enforcement safety and increase community trust – with the help of virtual reality.

The Appalachian Law Enforcement Initiative is designed to involve entire communities, bringing together law enforcement officers, community stakeholders and public administrators in a collaboration to reduce the use of force, teach de-escalation techniques and improve law enforcement outcomes for both the community and police.

Distance, small populations, and low budgets often hinder law enforcement officers and communities in the Appalachian region who seek training and development, said John Born, executive-in-residence at the Voinovich School and Scripps College of Communication.

“Trust and safety are equally and critically important to law enforcement, as well as the people being served,” said Born, who has previously served as director of the Ohio Department of Public Safety and colonel of the Ohio State Highway Patrol. “It can be difficult to deliver effective training and information in an area with geographic and resource challenges.”

To overcome such barriers, the initiative plans to use virtual reality in its training. Rather than using the technology in a traditionally tactical sense, the initiative’s goal is to immerse law enforcement in an experience that can change their perspectives, while also creating a structure to engage public policy makers and community leaders. The officers will wear virtual reality headsets to look around and learn from the training environment, providing a more impactful experience.

“Virtual reality is a powerful, low-cost tool that can be a model for the state and nation,” Born said. “It’s an extraordinary opportunity for the Appalachian region to lead.”

The Voinovich School, local law enforcement and Ohio University’s Scripps College of Communication partnered to form the initiative in response to concerns over law enforcement safety, public trust and de-escalation of dangerous situations. Law enforcement leaders from around the Appalachian region are working as an advisory group to assist development of the content for the program, making it as realistic and effective as possible. The initiative ultimately hopes to save lives, as law enforcement officers engage those in crisis differently as a result of their training.

“As we are seeing on a national level, the focus of de-escalation in police training has not been adequately emphasized,” Ohio University Police Department Lt. Tim Ryan, a member of the advisory group, said. “We hope this this initiative can help fill that void.”