The sports academy model is a concept that Howe Sound Secondary School (HSSS) officials fully support but it might be a while until that type of program comes to Squamish.
HSSS Principal Dr. Christine Perkins told The Chief that the school is open to any sort of academy but they need to follow a public process.
The process is so involved for programs in public schools, she said. You have to go through a process where courses are proposed and presented to the school board, then they have to be approved and then they can be put in place.
We're very excited to have a hockey academy or even a mountain bike academy there's lots of talent in our school district. Nobody is saying no to any academy and we're excited about it.
Perkins and HSSS athletic director Joel Harwood sat down with The Chief following news that a parent-led survey designed to gauge interest in academies was being distributed to the public. Tim Knight from the Squamish Minor Hockey Association (SMHA) also expressed his interest in bringing a hockey academy to Squamish two years ago, but progress faltered.
Harwood said he's interested in a hockey academy at HSSS, but two years ago, the numbers didn't add up.
It would have been quick turnaround at the time and my concern that I voiced to Tim was the numbers, he said. We were in a trough for minor hockey; for example there is no Midget rep hockey team in Squamish this year. When it's an academy, we're using public money and you need X number of students to break even because we can't run at a deficit for any course at any time.
He said as long as the numbers are up, there's a great chance a hockey academy could come to Squamish.
From a school and hockey lover's perspective, my wish was to see it go from a bottom-up approach, he said. They need to build the SMHA up first and have those young people grow and love hockey so when they do get to HSSS, hopefully the numbers are still there. And if they are, an academy is absolutely something we would love to consider and I would personally like to be involved in.
Perkins said HSSS officials have a meeting with a hockey academy group in the coming months and that she's excited to see the results of the survey put together by Squamish resident Terra Gaddes. Several hundred families filled out the survey, which sought to look into why children are leaving Squamish for academies.
Harwood said the survey was great but missed several key components about the costs associated with academies. He added that there are also concerns with the state of Brennan Park Arena.
Not only do we have to approach the school district for an academy like this, but we'd also have to approach the District of Squamish (DOS), he said. I know from having coached in the community that ice time is at a premium and even during the day, it's booked by the DOS. Furthermore, the ice block at Brennan Park is a concern for us moving forward.
He said one hockey player chose to attend a hockey academy instead of move from Don Ross Secondary School (DRSS) to HSSS this year. Perkins said she thinks about five or six total students chose not to attend HSSS but complete statistics would have to come from the superintendent, Dr. Lisa McCullough.
Perkins said the future of HSSS looks great and the diversity of programs at her school is a benefit for all students.
There's only one high school in Squamish and we offer as many diverse programs in the arts, academics, trades and sports as we can, she said. Are we growing great kids? One-hundred per cent we are. It's great to have choices.
She said she thinks many of the programs at HSSS are already great.
You don't have to make everything into an academy, she said, when asked about the possibility of dance or arts academies at HSSS. We already have a stellar arts program that is doing two big shows this year. Within our school we have lots of different things going on.
Harwood agreed and said if HSSS moves forward with any kind of academy, they will do it their way.
It's a common misconception that you have to be in the 99th percentile of athletes or an academy is not for you, he said. That's not the model we want to run with. We're not just trying to produce elite athletes we're trying to produce elite people. Sport is one of the hooks to produce elite people and we want to produce good people first and foremost.
He admitted that the hockey academy is still in a wait-and-see stage but Perkins said some progress has been made.
We're open to meeting with all stakeholders and we're further along than we were in the fact that we're already discussing programs that are in place elsewhere and that maybe we could implement easily, she said. We all need to get together, look each other in the eye, realize where we're at and move forward with a plan in place.
A request by The Chief to see the results from Gaddes' survey was not granted in time for publication.
