The student news site of Bernards High School

The Crimson

The student news site of Bernards High School

The Crimson

The student news site of Bernards High School

The Crimson

Volleyball starts new team and plays first season

Junior+Kayla+Najera+playing+the+ball+in+a+game+earlier+this+season
Normandy Studio
Junior Kayla Najera playing the ball in a game earlier this season

This fall the girls volleyball team was introduced to Bernards for the first time. When asked about the process of enstating the team, Athletic director Mr. Hoppe said “Third times a charm”. For the past three years the idea of starting the team had been circulated by students, but the proof of interest was not yet adequate. Two years of surveying 7th and 8th grade students about the sports they are interested in joining, and ample attendance to the Bernards high school volleyball club in combination with declining cheerleading applicants made for the perfect opportunity to introduce the sport this year. With 2 applicants for the cheer team and 35 for volleyball, funds from the cheerleading team were able to be used for volleyball, making the process of starting the team much simpler. Mr. Hoppe also mentioned that finding a coaching staff for sports like volleyball can be difficult, but they got lucky in finding the coach, Mrs. Gajewski, who is very experienced from her college volleyball career. 

How do you start a new team? Volleyball is a perfect example of how student interest can lead to the creation of new athletic programs. Mr Hoppe said that just like the school does in starting new classes he likes to “keep an open mind” when it comes to starting new sports programs. In order for a new sports program to be instated at Bernards, there needs to be proof of enough interest to support the program. This can be provided through surveys for incoming Freshmen, and attendance to interest groups or clubs that are started as a precursor to new teams. If there is proof of significant interest in a program through a few years of club attendance or petitioning for that sport, the athletic department can ask the board of education to allot funds. Once they have the funds they can work on budgeting, and coordinating all of the necessary arrangements for that specific program. Mr. Hoppe mentioned that the teams he had been a part of starting at Bernards included “Lacrosse, Fencing, and Volleyball”. These have all been very successful additions to the school’s extracurricular offerings. Any sport can be considered if the interest is there, and the school’s openness to new programs is a great opportunity for students to create the programs they want to see.  

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