Also OKs closing the East Greene weight room
Weight room supervision was elevated to the same pay grade as head coach at Greene County High School. The board of education at its July 16 meeting approved offering second-year physical education teacher Richard Beeler $6,500 annually – the same as a varsity head coach – to develop, run and maintain a year-round weightlifting program.
The board in June approved a stipend of $1,500 to Beeler to supervise the weight room this summer.
Newly-appointed athletic director Dean Lansman told the board that many students are seeing huge gains physically and mentally with the weightlifting programs Beeler oversees. He designs individualized programs for each student, and according to Lansman, “the kids have really responded well.” He added that there’s a “tremendous group of girls” that are using it.
The room is now open Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays in the morning and every day in the late afternoon for high school students. Beeler also is there Tuesdays and Thursdays in the morning for middle school athletes. Those hours will change when school starts, with hours before the school day begins and after practices are finished.
“As another coach, I think you’re doing a great job just on the liability and the health of our athletes, having someone who supervises the weight room rather that coaches passing kids off to someone else. Now you’ve somebody overseeing a program for kids. That’s awesome. That’s great for kids,” golf coach Dave Destival said.
Board president Sam Harding added that it’s great for the school, too, that he has worried for years that something might happen in a poorly supervised situation. Harding said many schools already have a weight room supervisor.
After approving Beeler’s added salary and responsibilities, the board’s next action was to close the weight room in the Grand Junction building effective with the start of the new school year. The room is used primarily by East Greene alumni who are competing in college sports. Shawn DeMoss said that there are one or two younger students using the room who would not have transportation to Jefferson. One is there every morning waiting for teacher Steve Sillyman to open the room.
Lansman said that the liability issues are the same for a weight room in Grand Junction as one in Jefferson. Harding said that athletes should lift with their team, and if the team is lifting in Jefferson, they should all be lifting there.
On a motion by Ashley Johnston and seconded by David Ohrt, the board approved closing the Grand Junction weight room effective Aug. 20. Some equipment will be moved to Jefferson; other equipment will be sold or offered to other community groups.
