ALL-FREEMAN CO-OP WOULD STAY ‘B’ FOR 2025-26; PARKER OK’s DEAL WITH MARION

The Freeman Public School District received assurance from the South Dakota High School Activities Association (SDHSAA) Thursday afternoon, APRIL 17 that, should it enter into a proposed cooperative agreement with Freeman Academy for the 2025-26 school year, the all-Freeman team would continue to play in Class B.

That’s the word that Freeman Public Superintendent Jake Tietje received from SDHSAA Executive Director Dan Swartos, who said that the association would use the current combined ADM of 87.09 for next school year — below the Class A entry point of 90.00.

Freeman Public’s current ADM is 68.09 while Freeman Academy’s is 19.00.

Should the new ADM count this fall come in at or over 90.00, Freeman Public would have the option of dissolving the all-Freeman cooperative prior to the January 2026 meeting of the SDHSAA board of directors, which would go into effect starting the following year.

Meanwhile, Thursday night the Parker School Board approved a nine-year, all-sports cooperative with Marion starting this fall on a 5-0 vote. With Marion’s board also unanimously approving the partnership earlier this week, the deal is done, pending approval from the South Dakota High School Activities Association — a formality.

REPORT ON FREEMAN’S APRIL 16 SPECIAL MEETING

The public heard a proposal from Freeman Academy for a sports cooperative with Freeman Public at a special meeting of the Freeman Public School Board late Wednesday afternoon, April 16 inside the high school gym.

Members of Freeman Academy’s board of directors were also in attendance and seated alongside personnel from Freeman Public.

Following the proposal, the public had an opportunity to comment on the possible partnership in advance of a second special meeting scheduled for Monday, April 21, where the Freeman Public School Board will decide on whether to approve the request.

The public comments were both in favor of, and in opposition to, the new partnership, although the spirit in the room appeared to be generally friendly.

Those speaking at Wednesday’s meeting were (in order of appearance): Janett Walter, Lori Hofer, Evan Waltner, Larry Timmerman, Jeff Wollmann, Connie Luke, Amber Bradley and Charity Ortman.

The sticking point continues to be the possible jump from Class B to Class A should the two schools co-op, which means a combined ADM would be used for classification; an ADM is based on student enrollment in grades 9-11.

The ADM is determined every two years, with a new count scheduled for this coming September. That would then be applied for a two-year cycle for 2026-27 and 2027-28. It is unclear what would happen if the ADM determined this September pushes the all-Freeman co-op into Class A, and what that would mean for the 2025-26 year.

Freeman Academy’s proposal, presented by board president Brian Paff, is for the 2025-26 school year and includes the following key points:

• For grades 5-6, junior high and varsity
• Sports include basketball, cross-country, golf, track and field, volleyball and cheer (football, softball and wrestling will compete next year as the already established Phoenix and Rebels teams)
• The co-op will compete as Freeman Flyers with maroon and white as the team colors
• Primary practice facilities for all sports will be Freeman Public, with Freeman Academy offering use of Sterling Hall as needed
• Freeman Public will host all home high school competitions, with Freeman Academy given the option of hosting two junior high and 5-6 home games
• Both schools will maintain their own eligibility policies
• The pep band will be open to students from both schools

This continues to be a developing story.