By Matt de Simone
The citizen comment period of the Botetourt County School Board last Thursday night in Fincastle was met with another batch of observations from parents, students, and coaches about the current state of Lord Botetourt High School’s track program. Last month, a group representing LB’s coaches and parents spoke out about the recent separation of the track team into a boys team and a girls team. More comments followed Thursday night.
LB track coach Marquita Holmes commented about choices made by the school “that are limiting (her) daughter, and other track athletes’ potential by giving preferential treatment to offseason football training.”
She referred to last week’s article which explained LB’s head track coaches chooses their assistants. Holmes refuted that information explaining, “that’s not true. We had assistants chosen back in August, which were deep-sixed by, I don’t know, school administration, maybe people on the board here, to pave the way for hand-picked candidates for, again, preferential treatment of offseason football training over track and field… We expect and pay for competent leadership that works for the good of all, not just offseason football.”
Holmes claimed school leadership could be initiating “bias policies” and that “things need to be changed.”
The track coach was joined by parents and student athletes who also addressed the track team’s climate that one student referred to as a “toxic environment.”
The Fincastle Herald reached out last week to representatives from Lord Botetourt to comment on the matter to which a response wasn’t given by press time.
To watch the public comments from last week’s School Board meeting, visit bcps.live/archives.
