Shawano Community High School’s athletic programs might not be bringing home too many state trophies, but there’s plenty for them to be proud of, according to a report presented Aug. 12 to the Shawano School Board.
Out of 752 enrolled students in the last school year, 339 of them were involved with one or more programs, which is about 45.1% of the entire student body, with 105 playing in two sports and 65 playing in three. According to Joel Wondra, district activities director, the total participation numbers are up 6.63% over the 2022-23 school year.
“It’s worth noting that our participation last year was up over the previous years, despite the fact that our enrollment was down,” he said.
Wondra noted this is the first time he has provided an annual report looking at SCHS athletics.
Grade-point averages for varsity teams were over 3.0 for the most part. The highest team average was the boys swim team at 3.81, followed closely by the girls track team at 3.79. The boys golf team had the lowest GPA at 2.8, followed by football at 2.82. The spring sports programs had the highest GPA of all the seasons at 3.45.
“When you compare that to the students who are not part of athletics in our district, our letter winners perform at a rate of about three-quarters of a point higher than the rest of the student body,” Wondra said. “I think that speaks to the quality of the kids not only in terms of their athletic abilities, but also their commitment to their academic performance.”
The girls soccer team had the highest increase in participation, with 42 students in the 2023-24 school year versus 29 the year prior. The football team also had a jump in participation, with 70 students in 2023-24, up from 61 in 2022-23.
In the Bay Conference, Shawano won the boys wrestling title for the fifth consecutive year. Shawano also took second-place conference finishes in boys track, boys cross country, girls golf and volleyball.
“If you were to do a tabulation of all sports, we finished fourth out of an eight-team conference behind Xavier and West De Pere and just a bit behind Seymour,” Wondra said. “I think that says, from a competitive aspect, we’re actually in the upper half of the conference and just a tip out of third place. I think there’s a lot to be proud of regarding the performance of our athletic teams.”
When surveying athletes, the report shows that over 90% agreed that their skills improved while on a team, and over 91% agreed that sports presented a sense of belonging and allowed them to develop meaningful relationships.
“I think that’s a really good number, but it’s something we can look to improve on,” Wondra said. “From a customer service standpoint from the perspective of our students, I think that is very positive.”
Wondra noted that the district is compliant with Title IX, which provides equal opportunities for boys and girls to participate in sports and other extracurricular activities. In the athletic programs, 55.3% were male and 44.7% female, according to Wondra, making a 4.1% difference in substantial proportionality. Title IX allows for a 5% difference, he said.
“Essentially, that says if 50% of your student body is male and 50% is female, then you would expect to see that same proportion when it comes to students participating in athletics,” Wondra said. “We are in good shape there.”
He noted more male athletes at SCHS participate in multiple sports, while female athletes tend to focus on one sport.
Board member Bobbi Lemerond saw the report as something that could be utilized as the school district tries to keep showing the positive things happening in the schools.
“There’s so much information on here we could use for referendum information,” Lemerond said. “I would actually like for you to do this with the activities side, as well. We can show this community that we’re touching every student emotionally and physically and helping them grow in every possible way.”
Wondra noted that the number of participants in activities like FFA, theater, band and other non-athletics is a little less clear, but he’s hoping to improve that data collection with the requirement this coming school year that students register online to participate in extracurricular activities.
lpulaski@newmedia-wi.com
Almost half of SCHS involved in athletics
