The Northport Public School Board of Education (BOE) discussed its athletics mission, philosophy and belief statements at its regular meeting on March 10.
The district and its students have utilized and been part of cooperative athletic programs for years, like many other schools in Leelanau County. Northport Superintendent Neil Wetherbee said its district co-op teams for various sports with Suttons Bay Public School have been going very well, but the board wanted to make sure that their athletic mission was revisited and aligned with their current philosophy.
“We had a coach manual from about 2006 that had our statements. It was really looking at how or if the board wanted to adjust those statements to match what their expectations are today… So that was to sort of let us know why we have sports and what our goals are with having them. This (discussion) is the board cleaning up their guidance to help me make decisions about how to move athletics forward on a day-today basis,” Wetherbee said. “We have a long-term relationship with Suttons Bay. They don’t kick us off their teams when they don’t need us and we don’t jump off their teams when we’re a part of this. We like long-term stability and they’ve been a good partner for us.”
