For Regis Jesuit High School, the forces that drive the athletic budget aren’t just financial.
They’re also philosophical.
At a school that strongly encourages athletic participation — and estimates 70 percent of students play at least one sport — administrators have tried to trim or defer expenses to maintain essential aspects of its programs and “hope that we can hang on,” said the Rev. Philip Steele, school president.
But they’ve also prohibited fundraising for individual sports (although practice is still catching up to policy) and funnel all athletic income back into the general fund. From there, the school distributes the money as it sees fit.
Regis charges no per-sport fee, as many schools do. But the $9,400 per-year tuition (which will increase to $9,775 next year) covers athletic expenses.
The majority of that budget, more than $600,000, goes to pay for about 70 coaches earning between $2,000 and $4,500 per season.
Although Regis considers athletic participation an integral part of its overall philosophy, even Steele complains that high school sports, in general, are “out of control.” Specifically, he cites the pressure on kids to specialize at such a young age rather than sample multiple sports.
“I think we’re in a position to be able to approach it differently, although there’s enormous cultural and parental pressure in some situations,” he said. “We try to balance all our different values and keep athletics from taking over.”
Kevin Simpson
Total budget: $17.8 million.
Athletics: $1,011,000.
Percentage: 5.68 percent of total.
Income from athletics: $50,000 (primarily gate receipts).
Tuition: $9,400.
Enrollment: 1,572.
Participation: Estimated 70 percent play at least one sport.
Intangible: School doesn’t allow fundraising for individual sports.
