Last May, a group of more than 20 concerned and curious parents met with Assistant Principal William Sterling and Athletic Director Jack van Patten to have their questions answered.
“Hoover, for some time now, has been neglected by the school district,” Jeff Lawson, spokesperson of the group of vocal parents, administrators, and coaches said.
The group calls themselves “The Jocks,” a shorter way to say jockstraps or athletics supporters which is exactly what the group plans to be.
After a long-run of meetings over the summer, Lawson and Tom Rubino, another parent, took pictures of the school’s run-down facilities and made a presentation to show Superintendent Michael Escalante. Lawson stated that Escalante admitted to being “embarrassed” of the condition of Hoover’s athletic facilities.
The Jocks hope to improve the football and baseball fields, the track, and fencing around the softball field. A new gym floor was also one of their priorities and because Lawson had shown the presentation to Escalante, refinishing the gym floor turned out to be a success.
Although it took 7 months, from planning to the date of completion, and approximately $20,000, the gym floor was finally finished during winter break. The last time the floor had been redone was in 2004.
“By having a new gym floor, most of us on the basketball team are actually looking forward to home games because our gym looks nice,” Kevin Shin (’11) said.
The Jocks have been raising money throughout the past year for various sports teams, including Pep team. They were successful in getting advertisement banners, which cost $300 each, to be displayed during one season of a sport, and $600 to be displayed at football, basketball, and baseball games.
Lawson and another member of The Jocks, Sylnara Mutini, were the biggest contributors in “pushing the group forward.” They have been recruiting many parents and have all of the coaches in support of their plans and ideas. Although they are an unofficial group, they are going to soon elect officers and spokespersons to publicize their issues.
“I’m glad that our athletic teams are finally being recognized and are being improved after a long time of being neglected,” Anna Rubino (’12), daughter of Tom Rubino said. “Finally, our fields will be nicer and cleaner.”
The group not only wants to improve the athletic facilities, but also improve the qualities of sports teams, the support of the coaches, and build the right kinds of attitudes.
