Nevada County Picayune and Gurdon Times Newspaper Archive

Some Basketball Games To Be Played At MMS

Prescott coaches were asked if they would like to play home basketball games at the newly renovated McRae Middle School gym.

The result was split, with the junior high games to be played at MMS and senior games to continue being played in the Prescott High School gym.

Ron Wright, superintendent of the Prescott School District, told the Prescott School Board the coaches wanted to keep the high school games at PHS because the players work out there and are used to the goals.

Wright said the finishing touches on the interior work for the MMS gym should be done soon.

In addition, he said the science building is finished and occupied, with the restroom work still needing to be bid out.

When this is done, Wright said, the renovation work at MMS will be complete.

Then the district will turn its full attention to the new PHS gym, which is currently under construction.

The piers have been drilled and filled with concrete to make the foundation more solid because of the area's soil conditions. Wright said the construction crew hit shale when drilling and this is good and means the gym will be on a solid foundation.

Wright's bad news to the board was it's been difficult to get much done on the new gym because of the recent rains. "It's soup," he said. "They've been pushing muck around. We need dry weather to pour the slab."

But, when the muck has dried out somewhat, the dirt will be used to help fill the new girls's softball field. Once the dirt has been put on the field, Wright said, its grade will be shot again to see where the dirt needs to be moved to. "We're going to make sure it's done right," he said.

The board also approved a new coaches manual, presented by PHS Head Coach Kirk Armitage.

Armitage was credited for doing a good job with the Curley Wolf football team in spite of being hired a scant two weeks before the season started.

The idea behind the coaches manual is to move the program forward and make sure everyone is on the same page at all times.

The manual details what is expected from the coaches, and how the chain of command should be followed.

It requires all coaches to dress the same during practices and while on the sideline during football games.

The use of tobacco products is also prohibited, as is profanity.

As Wright said, when a player makes a mistake, the mistake should be criticized, not the player.

"I like it," said board member George Odom, "because it'll bring pride back to the students. When I coached we worked hard at putting all the players in every game. This will show players what will happen if they work hard."

"I'm impressed with the plan," Rick McGough, board president said. "We have a place for all students to try out for football.

Jeff Haynes was impressed with the part of the manual that read Prescott isn't looking for good athletes, but is looking for good students who can be made good athletes.

Armitage, Wright said, is popular with the students and is respected for what he's done.

The board approved the manual unanimously and was told Armitage also plans to put one together for parents so they'll know what's expected of them and their children.

In other business, Wright said the district has experienced a slight increase in student population as it gained two in November. This brings the student body count to 1,119.

He got the board's approval on the purchase of three championship rings for Stacy Stockton, Traci Graham and Andrea Cossey winning the state tennis title. The rings cost $543, with the money taken from the board's budget.

The preliminary report from the exit audit was almost immaculate as only two items were found needing to be corrected, and, for a change, one wasn't the segregation of duties.

One of the items was a district employee being reimbursed for moving expenses, which is being taken care of, and the other is subsidiary records not being maintained.

The board accepted bids for the masonry work for the new gym, with Wallace Hall selected. Hall submitted the low bid at $125,745.