| I.
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CHARTER
& PHILOSOPHY |
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The
Athletic Program of St. Joseph is chartered to perform,
and strides to develop a Christian athlete who places
God ahead of individual or team victories and who strives
to play to the best of his/her ability while exemplifying
the qualities if good sportsmanship and fair play.
The development of the individual athlete is placed
ahead of winning. Student athletes will develop spiritually,
physically, psychologically, and socially through their
participation in a positive athletic program. |
| II. |
Program
Objectives |
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1. |
Student
athletes will develop spiritually by learning to place
Christian values at the forefront of competition, sportsmanship
and athletic endeavors. |
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2. |
Student
athletes will develop physically by learning sport skills,
improving physical conditioning, developing good health
habits, and learning to avoid injury. |
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3. |
Student
athletes will develop physically by learning self-discipline
and responsibility and by developing a feeling of self-worth. |
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4. |
Student
athletes will develop socially by learning an appropriate
standard of behavior (sportsmanship): by learning to
cooperate with others and to develop a positive feeling
of team spirit; and by learning the effects of competition
by playing to the best of their ability. |
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5. |
The
philosophy of a Team Concept will be stressed at the
instructional as well as competitive levels of play
on St. Joseph teams. |
| III. |
Code
of Ethics |
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The
interscholastic athletic program at St. Joseph School
is an extension of the Catholic school educational program.
It is an opportunity for growth in the areas of physical
ability and fitness, team building, and sportsmanship.
It helps to develop a student's sense of responsibility,
tolerance, and self-control. In sports where there are
no tryouts, there may be quite a number of players.
For this reason, equal playing time is not always possible,
nor reasonable to expect. However, team members will
be given as even an amount of playing time as possible
by the coaches at the instructional league level (4th
& 5lh grade). Slightly less emphasis is placed on
equal playing time at the sixth grade level, but all
team members will have some reasonable amount of playing
time. An equal amount of playing time may not be achieved
at the 7lh and 8th grade competitive league levels,
but coaches are strongly encouraged to find some playing
time for each team member. However, coaches will give
each team member adequate playing time during all practice
sessions to help them continue to develop the basic
skills of their sport. Failure to attend practices,
to cooperate with coaches and/or team members, or to
display a sportsmanlike attitude may result in disciplinary
actions identified in this handbook under Disciplinary
Measures. Absence from school the day of a game/practice
disqualifies the student from participation in that
game/practice. A Student may play in two sports scheduled
within the same season. Parental permission forms, fees
and health examinations must be on file with the Athletic
Program Athletic Director before any student is allowed
to practice. The number of practices allowed each week
will be set by the athletic committee and may change
on a spoil-by-sport basis. Fees are established to offset
costs of equipment, league entry fees and referees.
These are set at a reasonable rate and are subject to
change. |
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1. |
ATHLETE'S
RESPONSIBILITIES |
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A. |
Each
student athlete is responsible for schoolwork and academic
achievement While participating in any sport as it pertains
to the school's standards. Failure to meet the academic
standards will result in the athlete's ineligibility
to play. The specific length of academic probation/suspension
is discussed in The Student Handbook and described in
this handbook under Administration and Athletic Program
section. |
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B. |
Each
athlete represents his/her team, school and league.
Therefore, each athlete's conduct must exemplify self-respect,
self-control, respect for others and sportsmanship.
SPECIFICALLY: |
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1. |
Each
athlete is to treat every other athlete, coach and official
with respect and courtesy. |
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2. |
Athletes
are to respect the decisions of the officials. No words,
actions, or gestures of disrespect will be tolerated. |
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3. |
No
athlete may resort to roughness or fighting with an
opponent. |
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4. |
A
student athlete represents the School both while on
the school campus and when on a visiting campus. |
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5. |
Each
athlete must wear the team uniform per school standards. |
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THE
STUDENT AGREES TO: |
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-
display a Christian attitude both on and off the court
- be responsible for on-time attendance at both practices
and games
- cooperate with teammates and coaches
- support the school and team at all times
- maintain acceptable classroom behavior
- maintain at least a C average in all subject areas and
see that homework is up-to-date |
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Misbehavior on the part of an athlete may jeopardize
the outcome of the game by causing the team to forfeit.
Failure to meet a proper code of sportsmanship and conduct
may result in the athlete's ineligibility to play.
|
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2. |
SPECTATORS'
RESPONSIBILITIES |
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A. |
Spectators
are to reflect the same Christian behavior and sportsmanship
required of coaches and athletes. |
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B. |
If
a spectator exhibits unruly, disruptive or unsportsmanlike
behavior, the game official shall temporarily stop the
game and notify both the home and visiting team managers.
The appropriate manager deals with the unruly spectator
and, if necessary, removes him/her from the premises. |
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THE PARENT AGREES TO:
-
support the team through the willingness to supervise/transport
the child to and from games
- display a Christian attitude toward coaches, referees,
students, and other spectators
cooperate with the athletic committee, administration
and coaches in their exercise of
authority in the areas of student eligibility. |
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3. |
COACHES'
RESPONSIBILITIES |
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A. |
The
coach is responsible for seeing that the team follows
the league rules and code
of ethics both to its letter and spirit. |
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B. |
Coaches
will be charged with developing the basic skills required
to play the sport
they are coaching. |
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C. |
Each
coach must model exemplary Christian behavior to the
athletes.
SPECIFICALLY: |
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|
1. |
Coaches
are never to instruct or encourage an athlete to violate
either the spirit or letter of the rules of the sport
or league. |
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2. |
In
questioning or disagreeing with an official's decisions,
a coach is to act with respect and self-control. |
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3. |
In
coaching the team, a coach is to treat all persons with
respect, never resorting to insulting words or gestures. |
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4. |
Use
of any form of alcohol/tobacco around a student athlete
will not be tolerated. |
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THE
COACH AGREES TO:
- Supervise students in his/her care at all times
- Be fair and reasonable in playing time for each
student
- Cooperate with the athletic committee, administration
and parents in the exercise of authority in the areas
of eligibility.
- Meet prior to the start of the sport to discuss
duties, responsibilities and procedures.
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4. |
DISCIPLINARY
MEASURES |
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A. |
When
a student disregards one of his/her responsibilities,
a warning is usually given; repeated disregard can result
in being placed on probation, suspended or dismissed from
the team. |
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B. |
Probation
- student may participate in practices and games while
making a consistent effort to improve grades and/or behavior.
Typical duration of one to two weeks. |
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C. |
Suspension
- student may not practice or participate in a game until
serious efforts are made to remediate the problem; length
of suspension will be proportionate to the seriousness
of the problem. |
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D. |
Dismissal
from team - student will be removed from the team permanently
when the situation is serious and efforts through other
forms of remediation have not been successful. |
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E. |
A
consistent and timely handling of disciplinary measures
will be strived for by the Athletic Director and the principal. |
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The
above measures can be taken by the Athletic Director,
Principal, the student, parents, or the coach; but they
must be taken only with proper notification of all concerned
parties. Additional disciplinary measures apply to St.
Joseph School minimum standards and requirements and
enforcement procedures are listed under The Administration
and Athletic Program section of this handbook. |
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-5. |
THE
ADMINISTRATION AND ATHLETIC PROGRAM |
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|
AGREE
TO:
- oversee that the program is organized and ran within
Christian and league guidelines
- be fair and reasonable in carrying out disciplinary
action
- support team members, coaches and parents
- maintain academic and school disciplinary minimums required
for participation in athletics
by: |
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1. |
Beginning
the second Friday of the school year, student averages
will be printed out via computer. The athlete must have
a minimum of 2.50 grade point average otherwise, probation
and suspension procedures will be initiated. |
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2. |
Each
athlete's behavior will be reflected by his or her conduct
grade in which he or she must maintain at least a 73%
on a weekly basis. If the athlete does no meet the requirement,
probation and suspension procedures will be initiated. |
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3. |
Three
(3) detentions will result in probation. |
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4. |
Two
(2) suspensions from school will result in suspensions
from athletics. |
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The
School Council requires that any child participating
in any interschool sport must submit a health form signed
by the physician authorizing participation by the student
in the sport. This form may be found in the appendix
of this handbook. This form must be presented to the
coach prior to the first practice. If a student does
not have this form, he or she may neither practice nor
participate in a game |
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-6. |
INSURANCE |
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Each
league independently provides insurance coverage for team
participation and coverage varies with the league, sport
and association. St. Joseph school does not provide insurance
coverage for participating athletes. Students who play
in any school sport must have adequate insurance coverage.
It is completely the parents' responsibility to see to
it their child has the proper insurance coverage. |
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-7. |
PARENTAL
CONCERNS |
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Parents
are directed to discuss any concern regarding their child's
experience in a sport with their child's coach first.
If a satisfactory resolution is not reached, the parent
is encouraged to contact the Athletic Director, followed
the grievance committee. Only after proper appeals have
been followed will matters be escalated through to the
principal and or pastor. |
| IV. |
CONSTITUTION
& BY-LAWS |
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--1. |
GENERAL |
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The
Athletic Program shall be a volunteer organization of
St. Joseph School, responsible to the Pastor and Principal
and organized and originated through the St. Joseph
School Council, for the funding and supervision of all
extra-curricular athletic activities associated with
the School. In addition, some funding of very specific
aspects of the School's PE program may fall under the
funding responsibilities of the Athletic Program. These
specific areas of the PE program are limited to equipment
shared between the PE Program and the offered extracurricular
school athletic sports program. It should be clear,
however, that the PE program's general financial needs
fall under the funding of the School budget. Therefore,
the Athletic Program confines occasional funding of
PE to the areas specifically stated above. |
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2. |
MEMBERSHIP |
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All
persons from the school, parish or outside communities
not currently enrolled as a student at St. Joseph School
are welcome to become members of the St. Joseph Athletic
Program. A person shall be considered a member in good
standing upon the payment of the current annual Program
dues of [ten dollars] or [twenty-five dollars per family]
or upon completing two (2) committee approved volunteer
assignments. Membership is forfeited by failing to annually
qualify as a member in good standing, as described above,
or by failing to conduct oneself at school sponsored
events in a manner consistent with the decorum and good
Christian sportsmanship expected of Catholic men and
women. A simple majority as voted by the Management
Board shall revoke membership. |
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-3. |
BOARD |
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The
membership of the Athletic Program will consist of appointed
and elected officers who will serve set periods and
will be directly responsible to the Pastor and Principal
for the activities of the Program: |
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|
This
section defines the management board, its duties, composition
and its responsibilities toward committees and fiscal
management, |
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A. |
Management
Board Composition: The management board will
be a body of parents and other interested parties. It
will consist of the four (4) officers and three (3)
parent representatives. The parent representatives must
be the parent or legal guardian of a SJS student. |
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-B. |
Officers:
The term of each elected officer position shall not
exceed one (1) year. The offices of Athletic Director,
Cheerleading Coordinator, Basketball Coordinator, Secretary
and Treasurer are considered Executive Positions, and
no one person shall hold more than one Executive Position
at a time. Elections will be held each May, with the
new officers and Management Board to assume their offices
on June 1st. Officer and Management Board elections
shall take place no later than May 15th of any year.
Nominations for officer and parent representative positions
on the Management Board shall be accepted from the general
membership, and shall be voted upon by the current years
Management Board. |
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1. |
Athletic
Director: The Athletic Director of the Athletic
Program shall insure that all Board functions operate
as per the by-laws, preside over meetings, be a member
of all committees, and be considered the primary representative
of the Program, unless otherwise delegated. The Athletic
Director shall be appointed upon recommendation of the
past Athletic Director and consent of the Principal.
Set term of office shall be at the discretion of the
Pastor. |
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2. |
Basketball
Coordinator: The Basketball Coordinator
shall be an elected position with the purpose of coordinating
the boys' and girls' basketball program. |
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3. |
Secretary:
The duties of the Secretary shall include but
not be limited to the recording, distribution and filing
of all minutes and correspondence for the Athletic Program.
This information shall be presented to the Athletic
Advisory.
St. Joseph Athletic Program Handbook Committee at regular
intervals, and other interested Boards and committees
as the Athletic Director or Principal requests. |
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4. |
Treasurer:
The Treasurer must properly manage and account
for the incoming, outgoing and invested funds and other
assets for which the Athletic Program is responsible.
A full report of the Program's financial position shall
be made at each Athletic Program meeting. |
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C. |
Voting:
Each Management Board member and Officer will be entitled
to voting privileges. Absentee ballots will be allowed
if Board members are unable to be present for a vote.
A majority will decide all actions taken by the Board.
Each member will be entitled to one (1) vote. A quorum
will exist when three (3) executive officers and one
(1) parent representative are present. If a coach is
an officer in the Athletic Program, he or she cannot
vote for an item/items concerning his/her team. |
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D. |
Board
Responsibilities: The Board will have direct
responsibility for all activities of the Athletic Program
including, but not limited to, all committees chartered
by the Program. The board will keep the school principal
and athletic director informed of all Program-sponsored
activities |
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E. |
Asset
Management: All cash receipts or other assets
generated through fund-raising activities are considered
the property of the St. Joseph Falcons Athletic Program.
Funds will be deposited and maintained in a Athletic
Program account that is a sub-account of the Parish's
main bank account. The Athletic Program account shall
be examined annually by an outside auditor or an auditing
committee
of not less than two members. The Treasurer shall not
be permitted to take part in the auditing process. |
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F. |
Financial
Reporting: Monthly reports identifying income,
expenses and actual net assets versus the approved budget
will be prepared and presented to the Athletic Director,
the Athletic Advisory Committee and the principal (and
other boards/committees as requested by the principal).
The report shall contain current month and year-to-date
figures. The Management Board should meet each February
with the Athletic Director and the Athletic Advisory
Committee to assist with the preparation of the Athletic
Department's budget for the next fiscal year. |
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G. |
Fund
Raising: Fundraisers shall be planned in accordance
with the fiscal needs of the Athletic Department. Each
fundraising activity will be pre-approved by the Management
Board. All fundraisers will be controlled by a committee
of Program members who will report to the Athletic Program
Board all proceeds and expenses from that event. |
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H. |
Disbursements:
The disbursement of funds from the Athletic Program account
to the Athletic Director shall be made in May following
the submission of an itemized "wish list" by
the Athletic Director, and subsequent approval by the
Management Board. Extraordinary disbursements are allowed
at other times during the school year at the discretion
of the Management Board. |
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4.
|
COMMITTEES |
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|
The
officers of the Athletic Program will form committees
as they see fit. Examples may be:
-
1. Apparel/Equipment Committee
--2.
Athletic Banquet
--3.
Concessions
--4.
Home-Game Supervision
--5.
Service Hours
--6.
Public Relations
--7.
Fundraising |
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-5. |
MEETINGS |
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|
At
least four (4) meetings of the general membership and
Management Board shall be held
between September 1st and June 1st. A proposed agenda
shall be prepared by the Athletic Director and distributed
by the Secretary no less than one (1) week prior to each
meeting. |
|
6. |
AMENDMENTS |
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|
This
Charter may be amended at any time. However, the St. Joseph
Falcons Athletic Program
management board must approve any amendments. Amendments
will be considered adopted after receiving a simple majority
vote from the board. |
| V. |
ATHLETIC
PROGRAM GENERAL RULES AND REGULATIONS |
| |
1.
|
The
Athletic Program of St. Joseph School is responsible for
the direct supervision of the interscholastic athletic
program of St. Joseph School, to include football, basketball,
golf, tennis, lacrosse and cheerleading. Other sports
may be added or dropped, subject to the approval of the
Pastor and Principal. |
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2. |
General
activities of the Athletic Program arc to include formation
of athletic teams, participation in leagues, and fund
raising are subject to the prior approval of the Pastor
or Principal. |
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3. |
Student
participation in athletic activities will be governed
by the academic eligibility rules for extracurricular
activities, as established by the School. These specific
eligibility rules can be found in The Student Handbook
and this Athletic Program Handbook. |
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4. |
The
Athletic Director will make recommendations to the Pastor
and Principal for athletic fees. All fees are subject
to the prior approval of the Pastor and Principal. |
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5. |
The
Athletic Director will furnish the Pastor and Principal
with a written plan of activities for the coming school
year on or before the August meeting of the School Board. |
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6. |
The
Athletic Director will submit a written report of the
year's activities and a quarterly financial accounting
to the Pastor and Principal and make the financial status
available to any member of the Athletic Program during
any scheduled quarterly general
meeting. |
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7. |
Any
communication directed to the parish or the school community
at large is subject to the prior approval of the Principal. |
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8. |
The
Athletic Program will establish such rules regarding participation
in athletic events and competitions as may be required.
All such rules should be established with regard for the
athletic philosophy of St. Joseph School. |
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9. |
In
the event of unusual circumstances, the Pastor of St.
Joseph Parish and the Principal of St. Joseph School are
empowered to act on behalf of the Athletic Director and
the Athletic Program with regard to athletic activities. |
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10. |
Concerns
of parents and coaches will be handled by the Athletic
Director. Appeal shall progress through the Athletic Greivence
Committee, Pastor or Principal |
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11. |
In
keeping with Federal law, the Roman Catholic Church, and
the Diocese of Shreveport, St. Joseph Athletic Program
encourages equal treatment of the sexes. Consequently,
St. Joseph, through our athletic programs, strives to
provide equal athletic opportunity for both sexes. |
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12. |
Recruitment,
selection and disciplining of coaches will be handled
by the Athletic Director. The appeal process will follow
that mentioned above. |
