By Linda Conner Lambeck

WESTPORT–While a pay-to-play option was thrown on the table as something to consider as the school board contemplates a 5.48 percent hike in its operating budget for 2026-27, the board heard last week that at least one peer district is in the process of phasing out such a policy.

The Ridgefield Public School District, which once charged up to $250 per sport, has cut that fee down to $100 and hopes to eventually phase out the fee, according to a memo to the board by Staples Athletic Director V.J. Sarullo.

Another nearby school district, New Canaan, doesn’t charge a fee based on the philosophy that interscholastic athletics ought to be part of a comprehensive high school experience, Sarullo added.

Sarullo polled other “wealthy” districts (District Reference Group A) on their pay-to-play status. Two districts currently charge students to play sports: over a recent annual time period, Darien raised $71,829 from sports-playing students and Wilton raised $203,625.

Consideration of a pay-to-play option for sports was one of more than a dozen questions posed by the school board when it began poring through School Superintendent Thomas Scarice’s $158.9 million operating budget proposal for the 2026-27 fiscal year.

The board also asked about increasing revenue by charging more to attend school sports and performances and questioned why the administration was this year proposing picking up the tab for sports uniforms, something parents and booster clubs have paid for until now.

Picking up the tab for uniforms

“Did someone complain about it?” Board Chair Lee Goldstein asked.

Scarice, at a board meeting last week, said the idea was his, based on a philosophical belief that the district should be supplying the basics for students playing on district teams.

The board was presented a list of 20 sports Sarullo proposes buying uniforms for in the 2026-27 school year. The cost range is from $12,000 each for boys and girls lacrosse uniforms to $1,250 for boys and girls squash teams. The total cost is $95,000.

Board Member Stephen Shackelford asked for more information on how Sarullo arrived at the totals and whether coaches and parents were consulted.

This year, some 1,019 Staples students are playing sports, some are on multiple teams.

Shackelford and other board members wondered if basic district-supplied uniforms would go unused if parents or booster clubs opt for more expensive gear.

“Some kids are going to get their own anyway,” Shackelford said.

Pay for play

The idea of charging students to play sports or participate in programs like theater was seen not as a revenue source so much as a way to recoup some operating costs.

The polling conducted by Sarullo finds that Joel Barlow High School, that serves Easton and Redding, has a fee for all extracurricular activities.

In general, other athletic directors told Sarullo that participation rates at schools without a fee are higher than those with one. Although districts with fees make allowances for families that can’t afford it, the ADs say some are too embarrassed to admit it so simply don’t participate.

Board Vice Chair Dorie Hordon said she is very much against a pay-for-play policy.

“It’s an access issue,” said Hordon. “It is not a good road to go down. I think kids should have the opportunity to play any sport they want to play…or any activity.”

Ticket prices

As for charging for music concerts and elementary plays, Stephen Zimmerman, coordinator of music and visual arts, in a memo to the board, advised against it for any curricular music performances tied to instruction.

“These concerts are core student learning experiences and should remain accessible to families without financial burden,” Zimmerman said.

Instead, he recommends limiting consideration of ticket revenue sources to the Pops Concert, Jazz & Java program and the Elementary Theater program.

Due to its scale, Zimmerman said the district’s annual pop concert pricing could be aligned with the $25 ticket price of admission to a Staples Players show. Doing so, he said, could reduce reliance on contributions and help offset venue fees and audio engineering.

Another likely candidate for ticketing, Zimmerman said, might be Jazz and Java, which is in its fifth year.

There is currently no charge to see a production at the elementary schools. The district spends about $20,000 to support the program. An admission fee of $10 per ticket could offset costs and maybe help replace antiquated lighting systems in most of the schools, Zimmerman said.

The board is two weeks away from finalizing its budget plan.

Linda Conner Lambeck

^{_{Linda Conner Lambeck covers education for Westport Journal. She was a reporter for more than four decades at the Connecticut Post and other Hearst publications. She has covered education throughout Fairfield and New Haven counties. She is a proud member of the Education Writers Association.}}