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Waverly Shell Rock athletics...

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MitchLL

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Dec 26, 2018
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Just an update for those that might remember the story regarding WSR being kicked out of the NEIC...it seems that they're having lots of trouble finding a new home. They backed out of the MVC because they were going to be the smallest school and were afraid they couldn't compete outside of wrestling.



Then their application to join the WAMAC conference was narrowly defeated 11-0, and now they've appealed/begged to the Iowa Board of Education to mediate(force someone to take them).

I say screw em and let them rot as an independent. I don't ever recall the BOE being involved with placing schools in a conference.

They want to be the Big Dog, but they have no leverage and little to offer.
 
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MitchLL said:
Just an update for those that might remember the story regarding WSR being kicked out of the NEIC...it seems that they're having lots of trouble finding a new home. They backed out of the MVC because they were going to be the smallest school and were afraid they couldn't compete outside of wrestling.



Then their application to join the WAMAC conference was narrowly defeated 11-0, and now they've appealed/begged to the Iowa Board of Education to mediate(force someone to take them).

I say screw em and let them rot as an independent. I don't ever recall the BOE being involved with placing schools in a conference.

They want to be the Big Dog, but they have no leverage and little to offer.
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Narrowly defeated 11-0.
🤣
 
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MitchLL said:
Just an update for those that might remember the story regarding WSR being kicked out of the NEIC...it seems that they're having lots of trouble finding a new home. They backed out of the MVC because they were going to be the smallest school and were afraid they couldn't compete outside of wrestling.



Then their application to join the WAMAC conference was narrowly defeated 11-0, and now they've appealed/begged to the Iowa Board of Education to mediate(force someone to take them).

I say screw em and let them rot as an independent. I don't ever recall the BOE being involved with placing schools in a conference.

They want to be the Big Dog, but they have no leverage and little to offer.
Click to expand...
Yep, punish a whole school system for a few bad eggs. Sounds about right from some one here. Every community and fan base has a few of these bad eggs, doesn’t mean the community and school should suffer.
 
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Waverly-Shell Rock is changing its strategy in hopes of finding a new home for its high school sports teams.


The Gazette learned Tuesday that WSR will rescind its motion to apply for the Mississippi Valley Conference. This is according to notes obtained from a school board meeting held Monday.


Instead, Waverly-Shell Rock will apply to the Wamac Conference for all sports except for boys’ and girls’ wrestling, and will seek membership in the MVC for wrestling only.


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According to the release:


“(Athletics director Greg) Bodensteiner presented to the board information on the majority of the coaches’ preference to join the Wamac Conference rather than the MVC.


“He suggested that we could apply to the MVC for wrestling and the Wamac for other sports.”


The motion passed unanimously.


According to one Wamac athletics director, there has been “no formal inquiry” from Waverly-Shell Rock as of Wednesday afternoon and the expectation is that the application “will get zero support.”


Waverly-Shell Rock has been a member of the Northeast Iowa Conference for 90 years. Citing an imbalance in size, the other five NEIC schools (Charles City, Crestwood, Decorah, New Hampton and Waukon) voted to remove WSR from the league effective June 30, 2023.


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Those five schools hope to expand the league, and have extended invitations to MFL MarMac, North Fayette Valley, Oelwein, Osage and Sumner-Fredericksburg.


The Wamac currently is home for 13 schools — Benton Community, Center Point-Urbana, Clear Creek Amana, Dyersville Beckman, Independence, Maquoketa, Marion, Mount Vernon, Solon, South Tama, Vinton-Shellsburg, West Delaware and Williamsburg.


Beckman and Maquoketa will depart for the River Valley Conference following this school year, and Grinnell will join in time for the 2023-24 school year.


That will give the new 12-team conference an average BEDS enrollment of 381. Waverly-Shell Rock’s BEDS number (students in grades 9-11 in the 2020-21 school year) is 555, which would make it the largest school in the league.




www.thegazette.com



Waverly-Shell Rock rescinds Mississippi Valley Conference application ​


Waverly-Shell Rock rescinded its application into the Mississippi Valley Conference and now plans to apply to the MVC for wrestling only, to the Wamac Conference for all other sports.

www.thegazette.com
www.thegazette.com
 
I wondered if the state could force them onto a conference if nobody took them.

almost needs to be that way. Otherwise they would have to drop athletics.
 
Hawkeye Swarm said:
The state should step in. This seems a bit ridiculous to block them out of a conference based on the alleged actions of a small number of kids.
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Except these "incidents" have been occurring for many years...in multiple activities, not just sports.

Charles City, I believe, has the highest "non white" enrollment of all the schools in the current NEIC. But the problem isn't just racial. The vote to kick them out was 5-1, with WSR being the only "no" vote. So Cresco, New Hampton, Waukon, Decorah, and Charles City all agreed. And having previously lived in the NEIC footprint...WSR was also the reason Owlwein left a few years earlier.
 
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onlyTheObvious said:
I wondered if the state could force them onto a conference if nobody took them.

almost needs to be that way. Otherwise they would have to drop athletics.
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The story I read says no one can remember the BOE being in this position.

I don't think WSR would have to drop athletics, but being outside a conference would certainly be a scheduling nightmare for the AD.

But it's difficult to feel sorry for the AD because this should have been addressed years ago.
 
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MitchLL said:
The story I read says no one can remember the BOE being in this position.

I don't think WSR would have to drop athletics, but being outside a conference would certainly be a scheduling nightmare for the AD.

But it's difficult to feel sorry for the AD because this should have been addressed years ago.
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The State does have the authority to meditate and place a school in a Conference. Pretty certain that is how Mid-Prairie ended up in the RVC.
 
radaread said:
The State does have the authority to meditate and place a school in a Conference. Pretty certain that is how Mid-Prairie ended up in the RVC.
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Thanks for the info.

In regards to the WAMAC voting 11-0 against WSR...gotta be a consideration.
 
MitchLL said:
Except these "incidents" have been occurring for many years...in multiple activities, not just sports.

Charles City, I believe, has the highest "non white" enrollment of all the schools in the current NEIC. But the problem isn't just racial. The vote to kick them out was 5-1, with WSR being the only "no" vote. So Cresco, New Hampton, Waukon, Decorah, and Charles City all agreed. And having previously lived in the NEIC footprint...WSR was also the reason Owlwein left a few years earlier.
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Can you give us the details of "these incidents" over "many years"?

So far only one incident has been cited in this thread.
 
MitchLL said:
Except these "incidents" have been occurring for many years...in multiple activities, not just sports.

Charles City, I believe, has the highest "non white" enrollment of all the schools in the current NEIC. But the problem isn't just racial. The vote to kick them out was 5-1, with WSR being the only "no" vote. So Cresco, New Hampton, Waukon, Decorah, and Charles City all agreed. And having previously lived in the NEIC footprint...WSR was also the reason Owlwein left a few years earlier.
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@MepoDawg# are you from WSR? Thought maybe you were based on coming to their defense. This is pretty damning IMHO - when you look around the room and nobody likes you, I'd think at some point you gotta do some self reflection. Thoughts?
 
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Hawkeye Swarm said:
Can you give us the details of "these incidents" over "many years"?

So far only one incident has been cited in this thread.
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I'm not from there and don't have the slightest clue, but I'll ask you the same question - any thoughts on a 5-1 vote (where you're the one) and everyone wants to kick you out of the conference? I'll say it again, when you look around the room and nobody likes you, I'd think at some point you gotta do some self reflection. Thoughts?
 
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Hawki97 said:
I'm not from there and don't have the slightest clue, but I'll ask you the same question - any thoughts on a 5-1 vote (where you're the one) and everyone wants to kick you out of the conference? I'll say it again, when you look around the room and nobody likes you, I'd think at some point you gotta do some self reflection. Thoughts?
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Getting your ass kicked by the other team often causes resentment. Maybe they should man up and get better instead of kicking them out and using other excuses.
 
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Hawkeye Swarm said:
Getting your ass kicked by the other team often causes resentment. Maybe they should man up and get better instead of kicking them out and using other excuses.
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I have no idea because podunk town high school sport performance means as much to me as gum on my shoes - has Waverly Shell Rock been some dominating force in their conference?
 
Hawki97 said:
@MepoDawg# are you from WSR? Thought maybe you were based on coming to their defense. This is pretty damning IMHO - when you look around the room and nobody likes you, I'd think at some point you gotta do some self reflection. Thoughts?
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No, not from the area, but do know people in the school district. And they’re good people. Not really coming to the defense is anyone, just ridiculous to paint with a broad brush stroke and condemn a whole school district, but that’s what many on here do.
 
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Hawki97 said:
Have they grown larger in size from their competition? Or are they just better with the same amount of kids?
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This is from the article. I don't believe Waukon and New Hampton are even in the same class as WSR anymore. Same with Oelwein who left a while back, they just aren't competitive. A couple years Knoxville got tired of being not competitive in the Little Hawkeye and they moved to a conference where they are the largest school (mainly a 3A school competing with all 2A schools). Grinnell is now leaving the Little Hawkeye as well leaving 6 teams I believe. WSR would be a great addition except for the logistics.

Waverly-Shell Rock has a BEDS number (enrollment of students in grades 9-11) of 596. The other schools are Decorah (430), Charles City (399), Crestwood (305), Waukon (286) and New Hampton (272).

“They have become so much different than the rest of us,” New Hampton superintendent Jay Jurrens said earlier this month. “(WSR’s K-12) enrollment is 2,200 and ours is 930.

“Waverly-Shell Rock is a good school, but it’s a numbers issue, and it’s no more complicated than that.”

WSR athletics director Greg Bodensteiner said following the first vote: “We get it. It makes sense. The only options (for NEIC expansion) are smaller schools, and we’re kind of an insurmountable hurdle in the way of that.”

With five remaining schools, it is assumed that the next task for the NEIC will be to seek expansion.
 
Hawki97 said:
Have they grown larger in size from their competition? Or are they just better with the same amount of kids?
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They've always been on the bigger end of the conference and they've always been better.

The association and union need to step in. Every conference has a disparity in enrollment (BEDS numbers) with some schools simply being bigger than others. You can't just block out other schools because they're better.
 
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Hawkeye Swarm said:
Getting your ass kicked by the other team often causes resentment. Maybe they should man up and get better instead of kicking them out and using other excuses.
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They are a lot bigger than the other teams in the conference. That's main reason. WSR has over twice the enrollment of New Hampton. That is the reason the WAMAC didn't want them either. The negative press from the student's actions did not help.
 
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globalhawk said:
They are a lot bigger than the other teams in the conference. That's main reason. WSR has over twice the enrollment of New Hampton. That is the reason the WAMAC didn't want them either. The negative press from the student's actions did not help.
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One school has to be the biggest.
 
Hawkeye Swarm said:
One school has to be the biggest.
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Their enrollment is more inline with the MVC. Why did they rescind their app? Should all the other schools be held back from conference expansion/survival because of one school? WSR is continuing to get bigger as well. Same situation happened with DeWitt Central joining the MAC without the other issues.
 
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This move is more about population trends than racist baseball players and fans. Decorah is remaining relatively steady, Waverly is growing as a bedroom community of Waterloo/CF and the rest are getting quite a bit smaller.

From what I understand the move to boot WSR was done in an attempt to keep the oldest athletic conference in Iowa afloat as a result of Olwein leaving and other schools getting invites into other conferences that would be more competitive in relation to projected size in the coming years. The fears were that the conference would die a death of a half dozen cuts as schools left for other conferences.
 
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EagleHawk said:
And one school has to be the smallest, but WSR didn't like that idea
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Again, I have no idea because I don’t pay attention. But have they been given the opportunity to look to bigger conferences and run away from it? Preferring to stay the big fish in the small pond?
 
Hawki97 said:
Again, I have no idea because I don’t pay attention. But have they been given the opportunity to look to bigger conferences and run away from it? Preferring to stay the big fish in the small pond?
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From Ciggy/Gazette Post #8
cigaretteman said:
Waverly-Shell Rock is changing its strategy in hopes of finding a new home for its high school sports teams.


The Gazette learned Tuesday that WSR will rescind its motion to apply for the Mississippi Valley Conference. This is according to notes obtained from a school board meeting held Monday.


Instead, Waverly-Shell Rock will apply to the Wamac Conference for all sports except for boys’ and girls’ wrestling, and will seek membership in the MVC for wrestling only.
Click to expand...
 
Hawki97 said:
By double? If so, why doesn't Waverly Shell Rock take your advice and "man up" and go play with the big boys? Waterloo, Cedar Rapids, Iowa City all within shot of the BEDS ratios they're enjoying in their existing conference and within reasonable driving distance.
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The BEDS ratio with some of those schools is not comparable. There are a few similar comparisons but across the board it's more drastic.
 
EagleHawk said:
From Ciggy/Gazette Post #8
Click to expand...

Ah, I didn’t know what those conferences were and who they contained off the top of my head. I thought Mississippi Valley was Clinton, Dewitt, Eldridge, etc…didn’t know it was the big eastern Iowa schools and had no idea what WAMAC was!
 
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Hawkeye Swarm said:
The BEDS ratio with some of those schools is not comparable. There are a few similar comparisons but across the board it's more drastic.
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Just seems like 2:1 ratio over your competition seems a little extreme. It’s like beating up the smallest midg…I mean little person all day. Sure, you won - way to go I guess?

Given your stance, I take it you’re a Waverly parent and not a New Hampton parent?
 
So, actually looking at WAMAC - wouldn’t that be a better fit for them? The towns seem bigger than whatever conference they’re in now. Or is Solon going to get all butt hurt and not want their status challenged? I know they were pissed about Regina a few years ago about something and created a shit storm. I though they were in the same conference but I guess not.
 
Hawki97 said:
Just seems like 2:1 ratio over your competition seems a little extreme. It’s like beating up the smallest midg…I mean little person all day. Sure, you won - way to go I guess?

Given your stance, I take it you’re a Waverly parent and not a New Hampton parent?
Click to expand...

Neither.

By the way, Linn Mar is three times bigger than Waverly.
 
Seems like they got what they deserved. Some of their students were being racist (again as it sounds.) Charles City wasn't happy with the school's response to the incident combined with all the other schools in the conference being unhappy with the size differential Waverly posed. They gave them the boot.
 
Hawkeye Swarm said:
Neither.

By the way, Linn Mar is three times bigger than Waverly.
Click to expand...

Ok. And these schools are right close to the 2:1 ratio if WSR's BEDS # is 596.

Sounds like WSR likes beating up on the little guy and they could join a conference that would be similar to how they're positioned in their existing conference. That's fine, they should just admit they're scared to do it and prefer to be that big fish in a little pond.

16. Cedar Rapids, Jefferson 1228
17. Cedar Falls 1226
18. Iowa City, City High 1175
19. Bettendorf 1166
20.Davenport, Central 1153
21. Dubuque, Senior 1149
22. Davenport, West 1140
25. Pleasant Valley 1117
27. Iowa City, West 1107
30. Cedar Rapids, Washington 1034
37. Davenport, North 929
40. Iowa City, Liberty 843
42. Waterloo, East 793
46. North Scott, Eldridge 727
49. Epworth, Western Dubuque 674
 
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