School Board Considers Adding Softball Fields to Middle School

Candace Braun

The Princeton Regional School Board may add two softball fields at John Witherspoon Middle School to help settle a lawsuit filed by parents of female students who participate in ice hockey and softball at Princeton High School.

Jim Mahon, Michael Katz and Sandy Kurinsky, and Insu and Inkyung Yi, the parents of three high school students who play either softball or ice hockey at PHS, contend that an inequality exists in the treatment of female sports at PHS, which puts the district in direct violation of Title IX. Title IX makes it illegal for schools to deny educational benefits to students on the basis of gender.

According to Jill Ray of Novinson and Ray, one of the law firms representing the parents, the four specific areas of concern to the parents are the funding of girls' softball and ice hockey, the equipment and supplies available for the sports, the scheduling of games and practices, and the use of fields for practice and competition.

Prior to the filing of the lawsuit, Mr. Mahon sent a letter of complaint to Interim Superintendent Richard Marasco in August, with similar concerns. At the time time the district's attorney, Paul C. Kalac, said that the district was not in violation of Title IX on most accounts, except possibly for the complaint that the boys' baseball field is superior in providing an electronic scoreboard, batting cages, and a storage shed.

Since the first complaint, the Board's facilities committee has met three times to discuss possible solutions to the problem. At their meeting at the end of September, Dr. Marasco had said he would look into adding a scoreboard at a cost of $2,500 at the Community Park field, as well as examining the possibility of adding two playing fields behind Princeton High School.

However, according to Michael Mostoller, facilities chairman, "Our analysis at that time was that the space was too small in size ... and it would cost $66,000 to build the fields."

Since then the committee has investigated other ways to comply with the requests of the parents, such as collaborating with the Princeton Recreation Department, or creating softball fields at John Witherspoon Middle School, which seems to be the best solution so far, said Board President Anne Burns She added that there are four possible locations to put the fields at the middle school, but the corner of Walnut and Franklin Avenues appears to be the best.

"We are committed to creating at least one field," she said, adding that she has spoken to the parent of one softball student regarding the fields and encouraged her to tell the other parents to attend the next Board meeting. However, she noted that none of the parents attended the Board meeting on October 26.

"We are very pleased that Princeton ... is finally taking the concerns we have about the girls seriously," said Mr. Mahon in a statement sent to Town Topics. "Unfortunately, their preliminary proposal does not eliminate the inequalities. Since we are involved in litigation, any solution to the inequalities requires our agreement."

Mr. Mahon said that he is "happy to sit down with [district officials] at any time to reach a solution."

Both he and Ms. Burns have confirmed, however, that there have not been any meetings between the parents and the Board since the lawsuit was filed in mid-October.