The Allegheny Valley School Board hopes to answer two key unknowns about the district's football program at Tuesday's meeting: where the team will play and who will be the coach.
School board members are planning to consider giving the administration the authority to secure an off-campus soccer field for the fall. The team will also consider hiring a head football coach.
For many years, the team has played at Veterans Memorial Field along Lincoln Avenue in Springdale. This football team is the only Springdale High School team to play at Veterans Field.
Superintendent Pat Grazik noted that at the Oct. 18, 2022 board meeting, members voted to terminate the grounds use lease with the Borough of Springdale.
The program expires at the end of this school year, according to school district spokesperson Jan Zastauniak.
“As it stands, once the vote is taken, (athletic director Amanda Noel) will work with (Principal Andrew Lewisky) on this issue and… secure the field for the 2024-25 season.” Graczyk said.
Zastauniak said Tuesday's agenda also includes a motion to hire a head football coach. Ryan Tempalski resigned in December. The names of the candidates were not disclosed Thursday.
Graczyk said if the school board approves the construction of an off-site soccer field, the district would also have to consider possible changes to next year's athletic department budget.
“We need to bus our student-athletes to games,” Graczyk said.
Zastauniak said the team's home games usually draw about 500 to 600 spectators. Zastauniak declined to say where the district is looking to host next season.
“If the board approves this recommendation on Tuesday, the district will work as quickly as possible to find a field to begin the 2024 season in August,” Zastauniak said.
When asked about plans beyond the fall football season, Zastauniak said, “The district continues to have discussions with the Borough of Springdale regarding Veterans Field.”
Springdale High School's boys and girls soccer teams play on fields across Butler Street from the high school. There is much less seating and no concessions.
Band Booster Concerns
School districts will need to plan for security and supplementary staff for things like ticket sales and booster group benefits.
Susan Blanchflower, president of the Springdale Band Parents Association, said operating the concession stand raises the largest portion of the marching band's funds.
“If you go to a different field, there are a lot of different parts,” she said. “What I want to know is, can we have a kiosk available, can we sell programs?”
Blanchflower also said the band is growing and seeking to become more involved in the district and community.
“We’ve really grown in the last year,” she said. “Last year, we had a total of 19 (students), including the color guard. This year, we have 41 kids in our program (31 band members, 10 guards). We continue to strive to grow and scale our program.”
Pollino: Your input is welcome.
Board President Nino Porrino encouraged parents to express concerns and questions to district administrators.
“These are all things that we want to continue as long as possible. We are in the process of looking for another facility, but we are going to look at what we can and cannot do…that will be part of the decision-making process. “It's going to happen,” Porrino said. “I don't think anyone on the board wants something like that to go away. It's just, 'How can we deal with it?'
Teams that play at Veterans Field were in jeopardy last summer because the wall behind the visitor bleachers was leaning slightly. The district closed some of its bleachers following a recommendation from the Senate Office of Engineering (now LSSE).
At the time, the Senate reported there was no apparent danger to other parts of the wall.
“The district is awaiting a report from the engineer regarding the wall,” Zastauniak said.
Veterans Field was built in 1938. Dinamo his football has been played there ever since, except in 1946 and from 1973 to 1977, when he played at the Drescher Stadium in Tarentum during the field renovation.
Kellen Stepler is a TribLive reporter covering the Allegheny Valley and Burrell school districts and surrounding areas. He joined the tribe in his April 2023. Contact him at kstepler@triblive.com.
