Question: Why Pay-to-Participate?
Answer: Unfortunately, with the defeat of the 2006-2007 school budget, the district was forced to make significant cuts, and some very difficult decisions had to be made. Among those was a reduction in funds for non-mandated clubs and activities. In order for us to maintain our valuable and enriching co-curricular activities, while at the same time maintaining a balanced budget, a non-refundable fee for participation in extra curricular activities was instituted.          

Question: Will we continue to see Pay-to-Participate if future budgets are passed?
Answer: Since the state puts a CAP on the amount that a school budget is permitted to increase from one year to the next; unfortunately Pay-to-Participate may be here to stay. Each year, the Board of Education and the administration work very hard to craft a budget that maintains programs and adding or restoring programs is nearly impossible, however Pay-to-Participate will be considered each year as the Board and Administration craft a school budget.

Question: What are the fees for participation?
Answer: The non-refundable fee for joining a club or activity in grades K-12 club is $15 while the fee for each sport in grades 8-12 is $50.

Question: The participation fee for sports is more than that for a club or activity. Why?
Answer: Unlike clubs and activities such as academic teams, the district’s athletic budget includes the costs for equipment, uniforms, transportation, referees, etc.

Question: If a parent pays a fee to belong to a booster club, does that take the place of the participation fee?  
Answer: No. The booster organizations provide many extras/gifts for the students and are not related to the pay to participate fees

Question: Might there be additional costs beyond the participation fee and the booster dues?
Answer: For clubs and activities other than athletics there could be additional fees for trips and materials. Any costs associated with the club will be paid for directly by students or through fund raising.

Question: How will the funds collected from the students be used?
Answer: The funds will be used to offset the cost of the district’s extracurricular program.

Question: What is the advisor’s/coach’s involvement in collection of fees?
Answer: While there has been a conscious effort to limit the involvement of the coaches in the collection of the fees, it is each advisor’s/coach’s responsibility to ensure that every athlete receives a registration form. The registration form is also downloadable from the district website at www.ebnet.org and from the EBHS site under athletics.  All payments should be sent to the East Brunswick Board of Education, Financial Services Department, 760 Route 18, East Brunswick, NJ 08816.

Question: Are we “going backwards” in terms of what we are funding for our students?
Answer: Unfortunately, as long as school budgets are defeated and the budget is cut, there will be reductions in programs and activities that were once funded. At one time the Board paid for field trips related to the curriculum. This was cut several years ago and parents are now paying for field trips. The concern that had been raised by parents was, “Why am I paying for trips related to my child’s classroom instruction, yet transportation to sporting events are fully paid by the Board?” Athletics has been very fortunate over the years not to experience cuts in sport teams, but we are now faced with the need to balance the insufficient funding with program and service priorities.