A scheduled vote by Florence school board to determine the fate of the school’s athletic co-op with Henry was tabled Monday, Jan 13. Board member Cory Rislov made the motion to table the vote indefinitely, pending Henry’s response to a revised proposal.
Under the latest proposal, Henry School would be invited to participate in a co-op agreement with Florence. Florence would be responsible for 90% of expenses, excluding individual travel expenses; the cost of traveling to Florence would be born by the Henry district. The purposed co-op would be known as the Florence Falcons, dropping Henry from the name. According to the proposal: “Efforts will be made to practice in Florence as much as possible, but it is understood that both school’s facilities will be used throughout the athletic seasons.”
In a submitted question-and-answer portion of the meeting, Rislov explained that Florence wanted to keep the door open to student athletes from Henry. But given recent controversies there, he thought it was important to remove the Henry name. Although discussions on the future of the co-op are not new in either community, the most recent effort to end it were, for the most part, the result of a bullying incident between Henry football players. The 2023 arrest of a Henry teacher for sexual contact with a underaged student was also given as an example.
Additional features of the proposal, dated January 9, include:
- One home volleyball game, one boys and one girls basketball games in Henry
- “The Florence school board will be in charge of the sports cooperative. Articles of Cooperation will be adjusted upon approval of the changed terms.”
- A Co-op Board will be formed by school board members and administration of both schools
- “ To address Title IX, bullying, and complaints against school employees, school districts will use their policies and work with the other school to ensure safety and equality for all students and staff associated with the sports coop.”
The full text of the proposal is available here.
In other business, the school board had a lengthy discussion on purchasing new mobile classroom units. The main point of contention was buying brand new units or used units from Castlewood. No action was taken. A “Farm-to-School” lunch program was also discussed.
The board also set Tuesday, June 17, for its next election. That would coincide with Florence Town Board elections.