High School Goes Big, and Stays Home

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A high school, in the suburb of Dallas, Texas, has taken the popular saying, “Everything’s Bigger in Texas”, to a whole new level. Allen High School recently spent $60 million dollars on a brand new football stadium for its high school team.
As if a new 18,000 seat capacity is not enough, the stadium features a 75 x 45 foot HD video scoreboard, as well as a weight room and sunken-bowl design. The stadium matches up to several college stadiums, yet falls to two Texas high school stadiums as 3rd largest football stadium in the state.
Being from a small town in Northern Indiana, I personally find this both ridiculous yet amazing. To attend a high school that both deserves and can afford a stadium this big is incredible. My high school was lacking in the skills department when it came to football. However, we did have a million dollar facility that was very nice for a small, four way stop town. We valued our sports, good or bad.
Much talk of teachers losing their jobs, due to pay cuts, has been circling the US for quite some time now. In my eyes, use of this money could be going to the student’s education or funding for better academic facilities, instead of a brand new, lavish football stadium.
The athletic director of Allen High School expects 8,000 season ticket holders. That is approximately 6,000 more ticket holders that there are people in my whole town. I understand the upgrade, but I also thing that $60 million dollars is over the top. There is a way to reward hard work, dedication and success as a team. There is also a way that costs much less than $60 million dollars, especially in high school.

By: Hannah Hewes