Charleston County school officials explore possibility of creating middle school athletics program

Charleston County school leaders are looking at the feasibility of creating a sports program for its middle schools.

The goal is to provide a high-quality program that would be accessible to all students regardless of their income, and seventh- and eighth-graders would be eligible to participate.

“There's a lot of discussion, but there's nothing that anyone has written in stone,” said Dave Spurlock, the district's athletic director.

Launching the program could cost as much as $1.5 million, and officials aren't sure how they would finance that. Some of the expenses include: equipment, athletic trainers, administrative support, security coverage, and field and gym maintenance.

All sports currently offered by the South Carolina High School League would be offered, and middle school teams would fall under the direction of the high schools they feed. Teams would be coached by district employees.

It's unlikely any changes would be implemented until after the 2013-14 school year.

“These kinds of things take time, and you've got to get a lot of people to agree and to understand what it is,” Spurlock said.

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