Austintown school board could raise sports GPA cutoff

Staff report

AUSTINTOWN

Austintown school board President Don Sherwood said during a Wednesday work session the district’s 1.5-point GPA requirement for athletic participation is “embarrassing” and called for it to be raised to 2.0.

High school Principal Chris Berni said the change would have little impact – had that requirement been in place last fall, it would have held back only two athletes.

Of the about 500 ninth- through 12th-grade athletes in the school, only five maintain a GPA below 2.0 – but they’re “close,” he said, adding he believes all students could hit the higher mark if they were given enough notice.

Officials suggested the requirement take effect when students hit seventh-grade and any increase wouldn’t take effect until next year.

Administrators also discussed changing the district’s Sept. 30 kindergarten enrollment date to Aug. 1, to delay younger students who may not be socially or emotionally prepared, as well as diversion of underdeveloped students into a second, “transitional” year of kindergarten.

“We have kids that are not even potty-trained coming to our school,” Austintown Elementary Principal Tim Kelty said.

Kelty said if the board had changed the date before this school year, 41 pupils would have been kept from enrolling until the 2019-20 school year.