2008 Woodie Awards
Decision made to cancel Track and Field program
Lindsey Harcovitz
Issue date: 3/1/05 Section: Sports
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The varsity Track and Field program has officially been cut at Assumption College. The decision to terminate the program was made by Vice President of Student Life Catherine WoodBrooks and Athletic Director Ted Paulauskas. Over three years ago, Track and Field began as a club sport, and it was then boosted to a varsity pilot program in 2002. At the end the 2003-2004 seasons, the runners had to fight to extend the pilot program for another year. The members of Track and Field, consisting of thirty men and thirty women, once again found themselves struggling to be heard when they received word of a potential cut at the beginning of the 2004 season.
The athletes of the Track and Field team are outraged by the recent cut.
"I think we were targeted as a sport because we are a newer program and it would be easy to sweep us under the rug because it wouldn't affect as many people," said Junior Kyle Fontaine.
Co-captain Junior Caitlyn Clark of the women's team said, "I think anyone would say that we are one of the hardest working teams around. We deserve more respect than to cut us before we even had a chance to grow into our full-potential, because we have a lot of it."
A full review of all athletic programs takes place each year. Dr. WoodBrooks cited the fact that Assumption has too many varsity sports for their allotted budget. Assumption's varsity sports match those of much larger schools, including Bentley College who has twice as many students as Assumption. The Track and Field program received more concern from the Athletic Director and Vice President of Student Life because it was still labeled as a pilot program, and therefore placed in a separate category than other varsity sports that were beyond this phase. Student athletes at Assumption make up 23% of the population, however the school does not have the indoor and outdoor facilities to support this amount, according to WoodBrooks.
The particular reasons for the cut of Track and Field, as told by WoodBrooks are the shortage of financial support, inefficient facilities and accommodations, liability policies of the insurance companies pertaining to transportation, and lack of staffing.
The athletes of the Track and Field team are outraged by the recent cut.
"I think we were targeted as a sport because we are a newer program and it would be easy to sweep us under the rug because it wouldn't affect as many people," said Junior Kyle Fontaine.
Co-captain Junior Caitlyn Clark of the women's team said, "I think anyone would say that we are one of the hardest working teams around. We deserve more respect than to cut us before we even had a chance to grow into our full-potential, because we have a lot of it."
A full review of all athletic programs takes place each year. Dr. WoodBrooks cited the fact that Assumption has too many varsity sports for their allotted budget. Assumption's varsity sports match those of much larger schools, including Bentley College who has twice as many students as Assumption. The Track and Field program received more concern from the Athletic Director and Vice President of Student Life because it was still labeled as a pilot program, and therefore placed in a separate category than other varsity sports that were beyond this phase. Student athletes at Assumption make up 23% of the population, however the school does not have the indoor and outdoor facilities to support this amount, according to WoodBrooks.
The particular reasons for the cut of Track and Field, as told by WoodBrooks are the shortage of financial support, inefficient facilities and accommodations, liability policies of the insurance companies pertaining to transportation, and lack of staffing.