Tribune-Democrat Article

[psycho]

Upcoming CONSOLIDATION should take care of this "problem". Publics get bigger. More kids should result in a higher level of competition and talent. Privates will have to play these bigger schools.

By the end of next year Ferndale and CV will be history. Windber merger will be announced. Shade, Shanksville, Blacklick, Portage, CT, North Star, etc are all on the chopping block. County school districts are on the way. It IS coming. Cambria will have 4 high schools and Somerset three.

Would this be "fair"? Having the privates play schools that graduate twice as many kids?

[El-Moldo]

It wouldn't matter in the playoffs, only in regular season play.

[wpbc]

psycho,

Since you seem to have all the information please share answers to the following. Where are these new schools going to be located. Are they going to use existing ones or build new sites. I would hope that Richland would be used. I would hate to see 40mill in taxpayer dollars not be used anymore. How about in Somerset Co? New buildings even though Somerset just went through a renovation? What do you plan on doing with all of these empty schools?

[Manfred]

Converted into apartments for special care folk and elderly housing.

[psycho]

OK here's the scoop and remember that you heard it here first:

Cambria County School District -- 4 high schools located In 1) Johnstown Beltway Bandits -- AAAA/AAA -- (JHS, Westy, Ferndale, CV and part of Conemaugh twp) 2) Central Cambria Miners -- AAAA/AAA -- (CC, Blacklick, Penn Cambria, part of Ferndale, part of CV and part of Portage) 3) Richland - Forest Hills Ramgers -- AAAA -- (Richland, Forest hills, Shade,Windber, part of Conemaugh Twp and part of Portage -- this school may maintain 2 campus' at Richland and Forest Hills until enrolment falls further) and 4) Northern Cambria Hilljacks -- AA -- ( NC, Cambria heights, Glendale)

Somerset County School District -- 2 high schools located in 1) Somerset Sledders -- AAAA --(Somerset, Shanksville, Berlin, North Star and part of Conemaugh Twp)
2) Meyersdale Mennonites -- AA --(Meyersdale, Salisbury and Rockwood).

Conemaugh Twp will be liquidated with part going to Richland, part to Johnstown and part to Somerset.

I know this is hard to take for some and will be quite upsetting to others, but this is going to happen with maybe a variation of two. If not, then the holdouts will be severely harming the education of their students. Will these school districts actually hurt the kids just to perpetuate an outdated, inefficient, uncompetitive system that perpetuates mediocrity-- just to protect their turf?? Some parents may actually have sufficient mental capacity to understand how their kids public education will be harmed by a 50% reduction in state funding -- and how many educational and activity programs will have to be cut to just to keep all these schools open. Consolidation is the only solution because the money's all gone.

Good idea Manfred. Lots of Sr citizens could use some affordable assisted living facilities.

[usatf oldguy]

Psycho fantasyland is in disneyworld.You honestly think these new quad AAAA schools will compete with the other quad AAAA schools in the state? You really don't have a clue do you? Please pick up a high school track and field honor roll some time and have a gander where the best athletes are! Let me help you philly,harrisburg and pittsburgh!

[ilovefootball31]

To the post that said that the Seton LaSalle team was equal to Ligonier Valley...were you really there? It wouldn't have mattered what rotation was used. Seton LaSalle is 28 points better than LV and 30 something better than GCC. Did you realize that the rotation was probably used to combat the fatigue of chasing turnovers back down the court?

I think that the article that includes Coach Dominic's response is probably his direct response from the reporter asking him how his team can compete against a private parochial school. He did tell the truth about competing against such a team. Why do you think he knows the truth? Because he is a Bishop Carroll graduate. He played basketball there. He knows how some of his teammates arrived at such a school.

[usatf oldguy]

I think that the article that includes Coach Dominic's response is probably his direct response from the reporter asking him how his team can compete against a private parochial school. He did tell the truth about competing against such a team. Why do you think he knows the truth? Because he is a Bishop Carroll graduate. He played basketball there. He knows how some of his teammates arrived at such a school.

Hmmm very interesting.I didn't know he was a private grad.That really puts an interesting light on the comments.Seems some of the private people will tell it how it is!!!!

[matko2510]

I think the system in the piaa is flawed only in basketball. like a private school in a that gets 4 good athletes will be way better then most public schools around the state that are mostly a one horse show. Its the same in aa once you get to aaa and aaaa the playing field is a lot more level. In a and aa public schools rarely stand a chance against the private school all star teams.