The Fayette school district will not start a wrestling program, at least for now. The district’s Board of Education did not vote on the proposal following a lengthy discussion during its January meeting on Thursday afternoon, January 19, effectively dropping the matter for the time being.

However, board members did signal they would consider the proposal again in the future. “Not right now, but maybe one day,” was the message from at least two members, Shauna Young and Kristen Gibbs.

The chief concerns expressed by the board were the cost of sustaining a program, which would have teams for both boys and girls, and several unknowns when it comes to conference affiliation.

Startup costs for the program are estimated to be between $18,000 and $25,000, which would include uniforms, regulation mats, and other equipment.

James Briggs, a veteran wrestler who is seeking a school wrestling program in Fayette, pledged $5,000 of his own money toward the startup costs. He also said other startup costs could be raised from the wrestling community.

Mr. Briggs is the de facto leader of a group of parents hoping to establish high school teams in Fayette. He originally presented the matter to the school board in June of last year.

In August, the board tasked Superintendent Brent Doolin with providing further information with regard to the economics and other logistics of starting and maintaining a program. On January 12, he presented much of that information at a community forum.

Mr. Briggs said he was disappointed following Thursday’s meeting but credits the board for its due diligence in exploring the matter.

“What we asked the board to do is be honest about its feasibility, and they looked at the numbers and don’t think it’s feasible right now,” Mr. Briggs said. “They haven’t shut the door permanently. Obviously, that doesn’t help your high school kids or your eighth grades who are going to high school. There could be wrestling down the road for other kids in this community.”

Mr. Briggs told the board during his pitch in June that if the district did not adopt wrestling, he would find another school for his kids to attend that does offer the program. He said following Thursday’s meeting that his eighth-grade child will attend another school next year.

Around a dozen parents attended the community forum on January 12, along with several current coaches and board members, Matt Hudson, Aaron Bentley, and Mrs. Gibbs. Supt. Doolin discussed obstacles to starting a high school wrestling program as well as survey results from students regarding their level of interest in joining the teams.

Survey results did indicate a high level of interest. However, Mr. Doolin suggested they be taken lightly. One hundred thirty boys and 41 girls districtwide indicated their interest in wrestling, but he noted that it is easy to click “yes” on a survey than actually joining a team.

“I would not be shocked that if by the time those kids got there, those numbers weren’t inflated,” said Mr. Doolin.

He also noted survey discrepancies regarding students who said they would skip playing basketball for the chance to wrestle.

Twenty-five boys and 11 girls already in high school said in the survey that they would be interested in a wrestling program.

Other obstacles to forming a program include bus transportation for competitions and facilities for practicing and hosting events. The district’s basketball gyms are in high demand year-round from high and middle school teams, as well as youth teams.

Proponents of the program suggest that wrestling could be practiced anywhere there is adequate space to toss down a mat, even hallways, the stage, or the high school commons where the forum was held.

Transportation, however, is an increasing problem for the district. The afternoon prior to the public forum, Mr. Doolin told attendees he was moments away from canceling an afternoon bus route due because he was short a driver. And that was a day without extra trips such as away basketball games.

“Right now, we are in a bus driver crisis,” said Supt. Doolin. He went so far as to ask if anyone in attendance would be interested in obtaining a bus driver’s license to help alleviate the problem.

Mr. Doolin said that based on a mock schedule with area schools that already have wrestling, the cost for bus transportation during a regular season would total around $3,300. That would be added to the cost of hiring coaches for boys’ and girls’ teams, which he estimated at $17,218 for two head coaches and two assistant coaches. Although, if Fayette established a program, it would likely have one head coach and one assistant coach to serve both teams.

A major driver in the board’s inaction on Thursday centered around the uncertain future of the Lewis & Clark Conference, of which Fayette has been a member for decades. Longtime football powerhouse Marceline, which also has its own wrestling program, will leave the conference after the 2023-24 school year. At least three other schools in the conference have shifted to eight-man football, leaving the future of the L&C in limbo.

“Not knowing where we’re going to be and what travel we’re going to have…we are definitely in flux right now,” said Board President Skip Vandelicht regarding the L&C. 

Another major question is how much wrestling teams would take away from basketball rosters. Fayette currently has 17 girls on its junior varsity and varsity rosters, while the boys’ team has 18.

Mrs. Gibbs said that the district already does not do proper justice to the teams it has. Two programs, baseball and track, don’t even have their own facilities and are at the mercy of Central Methodist University. And players on the junior high softball team must pay for their own uniforms.

“The reality is, and the thing that bothers me is, we’re not taking care of what we’ve got,” she said. “To say ‘no,’ is not the right answer. But not right now.”

Briggs said that although the board chose not to start a wrestling program here, he would continue to pursue the matter, likely from another angle. One way to possibly begin a high school team here would be to start a youth program in Fayette. He is hoping to partner with Central Methodist University, which recently started men’s and women’s programs. Several area athletes who compete in wrestling at the youth level currently travel to Boonville or Columbia.