With tight budgets and cuts in state funding, numerous school districts in Butler County have turned to imposing student activity fees and a “pay to play” model for sports.

Of the districts serving Butler County, five charge athletic fees and four do not. The fee amounts and structures vary from district to district.

The Butler School Board at its meeting Monday is set to vote on increasing its athletic fee from $60 to $75.

The board is also considering instituting a fee for other extra-curricular activities that incur costs including marching band, the Sequinettes and yearbook, though that change is not yet being brought for a vote, school board President Nina Teff said.

Butler Athletic Director Bill Mylan said that athletic participation has not been affected by the fee, which is now in its second year.

The fee is paid once per student per year, meaning a three-sport student does not have to pay three times. There is also a cap of $240 per family and families with financial troubles can request a discount or waiver.

Mylan said one selling point for the fee at Butler is that the money so far has been accounted for and used specifically for one-time expenses at the discretion of the school board.

“It makes it a little easier to swallow, when people know that somehow, someway this will benefit their kids,” Mylan said.

An example of this came last year when the district replaced an aging golf cart with a Gator, a utility vehicle that can be used by the district's athletic trainers to transport injured athletes.

The South Butler School District charges a $50 fee per student per each sport that they participate in with a cap of $150 per family.

The school board enacted the fees with a vote in 2015, though it was discussed and voted down in 2013.

South Butler also has a $25 fee and $75 cap per family for nonathletic clubs and activities.

Participants in the National School Lunch Program are exempt from the fees and families experiencing financial hardship may also apply for a waiver.

The revenue, estimated at $50,000 per year, goes into the district's general fund.

Athletic director Kurt Reiser said the revenue has helped defray costs such as new uniforms.

“I do not believe it has deterred our students from participating,” he said.

The Mars School District has been charging high school and some middle school students for participation fees since the 2011-12 school year.

Jill Swaney, the district's business manager, said each student is charged $100 per sport for which the district provides coaches or extracurricular activity they participate in at the high school.

There is no cap or discount for families with multiple children, but the fee is waived for all students who receive free or reduced-cost lunches.

Swaney said students who take band classes are not charged the fee unless they participate in an after-school band like marching band.

Music and chorus students who participate in the various competitions, like the annual Pennsylvania Music Educators Association competition, do not pay the fee for the first level of competition because it is considered a field trip.

If the student advances to the next level, they must pay the $100 activity fee, Swaney said.

The Seneca Valley School District charges $35 per student per nonathletic club activity with a cap of $105 per family. For nonathletic performance activities, like musical, marching band, color guard, madrigal singers, pom pons, thespians and play, a $50 fee per student per activity is charged with a cap of $150 per family. A $35 fee per student is charged for elementary school activities in grades 4 to 8 with a cap of $105 per family. For athletics, $125 is charged per student per activity with a cap of $375 per family. Fees are waived for those who are in the free and reduced lunch program.

Moniteau School District Superintendent Sean Arney said the district charges a $25 fee for activities, not to exceed $75 per year and $150 per family.

Among the activities with fees are all sports, marching band, musical, FFA, decathlon and mock trial.

“I think it's becoming very common in school districts in the state,” Arney said.

John D'Amore, Moniteau business manager, said the district started collecting fees from students in grades 7 to 12 in 2012-13 in response to cuts in state funding. There are no discounted fees.

According to D'Amore, fees collected become part of the general fund. In 2014-15 the district collected $14,076 and in 2015-16 the district collected $15,132.

The A-C Valley, Slippery Rock, Karns City and Freeport districts do not charge athletic fees.

Karns City School District officials have discussed the fees in the past, though they are holding off for as long as possible, School Board President Bryan Fleeger said in an email.

“We at Karns City try to encourage our students to participate in extra curricular activities and I believe that this fee would possibly prevent some families from being able to do so,” he said.

Slippery Rock also offers athletics without fees to prevent barriers to student participation.

“We have not done this (activity fees) in the past. It is my intention to continue that practice, to maximize accessibility for all of our students, and to enhance their educational experience as well,” Superintendent Alfonso Angelucci said.

Five of the nine school districts that serve Butler County charge fees for students to participate in athletics. Some also charge students to participate in other extra-curricular activities and most charge for student parking permits. The Butler Eagle surveyed the following districts.

<em>Eagle Staff writers Paula Grubbs, Rachel Wagoner, Phillip Rau and Laurie Lindsay contributed to this report.</em>