Bedford School Board members voted to make the high school’s Booster Club district-controlled, although the decision could be revisited after some current club members felt they weren’t given enough input on the matter.

Booster Club members had hoped to raise money as an independent, nonprofit organization, but at its June 16 meeting the School Board decided it would not be run that way. The move could set a precedent, moving independent booster clubs and other fundraising entities under the direction of the school district.

Former School Board member Sue Thomas had worked with the subcommittee dealing with the Booster Club, while she served on the board.

Thomas said while on the subcommittee she spoke with the administration about whether to keep the Booster Club independent, but because of a full schedule at the end of her term, she did not have a chance to meet with Booster Club members.

“I’ll never fault the board for making a decision. However, I was surprised the decision was made without bringing in the current Booster Club board,” Thomas said. “They’ve been working very hard for a year, and they didn’t bring them in and talk to them. We’ve done it for every other board. That is my frustration with it.”

Booster Club member Paul Woodmansee said the group had hoped to speak with the School Board before its decision was made.

“We wanted to have a dialogue with the School Board from the beginning, but we knew with the new school coming in, it wasn’t a huge priority,” Woodmansee said. “We thought we’d wait until after the athletic season and school year were over and then talk about it. We were disappointed.”

Manchester West High School Booster Club president Jay Brewster, who is not involved with the Bedford High School club, has worked with West athletics for four years and said West school officials do set guidelines for their group of volunteers. Brewster said the West Booster Club often met socially or informally to discuss issues, something the Bedford High School club may not be able to do.

“We would have regularly scheduled meetings; we had one a month. Volunteers went to the meeting if they could,” said Brewster. “By having it under the school’s guidelines, it becomes more formal. The West Booster Club was very informal. We kept minutes, but had a lot of free-flowing discussions.”

Woodmansee has worked with a variety of athletic groups in town, including the Bedford Little League and Babe Ruth groups.

“It’s easier to get volunteers and raise money when you’re away from the school district or town,” said Woodmansee. “That can be restrictive on us as to what we can do in terms of day-to- day operations. It’s easier if you’re on your own.”

While there was no Bedford High School booster club in the past, since there was no high school, Bedford students and parents were involved with the West club.

“We always had Bedford students going to West, and the Bedford School Board was never involved with that,” said Brewster.

“They are dealing with the same age group, just different kids. It is kind of beyond me as to why they want to get involved now just because it is now Bedford High School.”

School Board Chairman David Sacks said he didn’t believe the decision would have a negative effect on the club. “We don’t see a difference in terms of fundraising ability and attracting volunteers between an independent group and one that isn’t,” said Sacks. “The difference is at the end of the day George Edwards would sign the check. We’d let it be governed freely, but we just want it closely aligned with the school.”

According to Sacks, the School Board’s plan is to have the club under district control for a short period of time, possibly three to four years.

“We’re a young school and don’t have four-grade operation yet. It’s not like the other organizations which are district-wide,” Sacks said. “This will be very closely linked to the high school. We’d like to incubate the booster club and then in the not so distant future spread it out and have it be its own group.” Sacks said he felt the School Board got input from the booster club.

“The subcommittee did interact with the Booster Club members,” he said. “They have explored the concerns, and they did present the concerns.”

Thomas said she believes the board should reconsider its decision. “I’ve changed my mind based on a whole bunch of things, but mostly based on how much they (the Booster Club) have done for the last year,” said Thomas. “I am not critical of their decision, and I have had people question my vote. I think mistakes were made. I don’t think anything was done blatantly on purpose, but I think procedural mistakes were made. It can be reexamined, which is good.”

Sacks said looking at the subject again is a possibility. “It’s a board’s prerogative to change the decision,” he said. “We just need a board member to say they want to open it up for discussion again. I think I would want to hear from the subcommittee again if that was the case.”

Regardless of the end result, Thomas said she thinks it’s in the school’s best interest to reconsider the decision. “Maybe the vote will stay the way it was, but at least the community will be able to say they heard both sides of the story, stepped back and looked at the decision. That’s all I want to see,” said Thomas.