Plano School District Board OKs one-year contract with ATI for athletic training services

The Plano School District 88 Board of Education voted Monday, July 19, to retain ATI Physical Therapy for athletic training services for the district under terms of a one-year contract.

According to the contract, the district will pay ATI $44,000, up from $20,500 for this past year. ATI, however, will increase the number of hours it serves the district each week from 25 to 40. The district has retained ATI for 12 athletic seasons.

District administrators presented two options to the board during the July 19 meeting: to remain with ATI or hire their own athletic trainer.

Athletico Physical Therapy “was not interested in providing a proposal,” according to district documents, “based on distance from school to facility.”

The pros of hiring a district trainer included allowing the district to control hours, the ability to share duties with Plano Middle School, and the potential for a less expensive hourly wage over a salary. A con to that option would be a lack of information about standard trainer wages, market and availability, according to district documents.

The benefits of remaining with ATI, as the board discussed, included an increased amount of coverage for late night practices and summer activities and a lack of additional compensation for tournaments. Cons included an increase in price for services, and a question as to whether district can keep ATI busy for 40 hours a week, district documents show.

Current Plano High School sports programs that receive athletic training services include: football, baseball, golf, soccer, cross country, track and field, basketball, volleyball, bowling and poms.