The Wright City R-II School Board granted a waiver for its facilities use policy to allow a basketball feeder team to use the middle school gymnasium for practice. District patron and parent Charlotte Deroy appeared before the board during the public comments portion of the board’s February meeting to request a waiver for the use of the gymnasium for the basketball feeder program. Deroy’s son plays on the team and attends Wright City Middle School. At issue, Deroy said, was part of the school’s facilities use policy that states the gymnasium’s availability to a Wright City School District (WCSD) athletic feeder team is limited to “weekdays during regular business hours.” “The question is, what are ‘regular business hours’?” Deroy asked the board. “I’ve been told that this means when school is in session, which doesn’t make sense to me since it would never be available when school is in session.” Deroy asked the board to clarify the issue of time in which the facility could be used. She suggested his team be allowed to use the gymnasium in the evenings while custodians are still working in the building. She said other teams in the league are able to practice at the Wentzville school gym. Deroy said that with 75 percent of the team comprised of WCSD students, the make-up of her son’s team meets the criteria of a WCSD athletic feeder team allowing use of the gym as stated in the facilities use policy. “This is only going to help the school’s basketball program as these kids and their parents make the commitment to this feeder program,” said Deroy. Deroy’s request specified that the team would limit its use to 6-8 p.m. for four weeks. Administrators said that custodian hours typically end at 10:30 p.m. Board President Austin Jones said he supports the request. “As long as the kids aren’t making a mess and are out of there before the custodians leave, I don’t see any reason why we can’t let the team use the gym,” Jones said. Board Treasurer Mary Groeper said that some groups in the past had abused the privileges the school had granted in letting them use facilities. “That’s why we put the policy in place,” she remarked. At the same time, Groeper said, she recognizes the need that Deroy and the team is seeking to fill. “I see a huge need for feeder teams for our students,” said Groeper. “Our kids need to be learning fundamentals early.” Under the agreement reached at the meeting, Deroy will make a fully refundable $100 deposit, provide proof of insurance through the YMCA as a host organization for the league, and limit use of the gym to the next four weeks. Jones said the board’s policy committee would have to look later at the possibility of revising the language regarding “regular business hours” in the facilities use policy.