New ADs: DeRuwe And Wooderchak

WAITSBURG - Sue DeRuwe and Stephanie Wooderchak will share athletic director duties in 2012-13.

To cut costs, the Waits­burg Prescott athletic combine has switched from the single athletic director method to having two staff members share the duties part-time.

The change was made at the end of the 2011-12 school year and was the result of the tight budgets both districts face, school officials say.

"It's another way we can cut some costs," said Waitsburg Superintendent Dr. Carol Clarke. "It will save both districts some money.

And this is the way it operated in the past."

The 2011-12 school year was the first year the athletic combine decided to hire one athletic director.

The athletic director handled the scheduling of sports games and practic­es, supervised and helped coaches and prepared the sports fields and gymna­siums.

Previously, the athletic director job was shared by Waitsburg's Second­ary Principal Stephanie Wooderchak and the late Jack Smiley, who served as Prescott's athletic di­rector.

Wooderchak had been athletic director for Waits­burg from August 2008 to October 2011.

Smiley had resigned from his position in Prescott after the 2010-11 school year to become the athletic director for the Dayton School District. The WP athletic combine was already on track to go to a joint athletic director arrangement.

JP Thew, a former as­sistant coach for the Car­dinals and the Tigers, was hired as the athletic director for the combine last summer following Smiley's resignation.

Thew was notified at the end of the school year of the change back to two athletic directors for the combine, he said.

Last week, Thew said he still plans to attend WP sports events and will likely go back to work for the National Guard.

He said he recently completed some annual training with the guard.

Prescott Superinten­dent Dr. Bill Jordan said his district simply had the opportunity to keep an athletic director in- house when there was a retirement at the end of the school year.

Sue DeRuwe will be­come the part-time coun­selor, part-time athletic director for the district, Jordan said. Prescott's counselor, Marianne Newell, retired at the end of the school year.

DeRuwe is a veteran teacher in Prescott and has been a volleyball coach, he added.

"She knows the athletic system and the coaches," Jordan said. "We're ex­cited to have (DeRuwe) take on that position."

In addition to having athletics representatives at both schools, Jordan said having two athletic directors will allow com­munication with athletes on a day-to-day basis and will allow the directors to more easily make home field preparations.

Clarke said having Wooderchak step up again to fulfill athletic director duties benefits the district by allowing it to save about $10,000. Wood­erchak will receive an athletic director stipend for the extra work, Clarke said, and she's happy to have Wooderchak back in the position.

"She did an excellent job of it," Clarke said.

Wooderchak shares the feeling and says she's glad to return to the sports world.

"I am happy to return to that position in sup­Stephanie port of our WP athletes, parents and community," Wooderchak said. "We are looking forward to a great 2012-13 sports season!"