Bandys High School will receive $200,000 in state funding for athletic facility improvements

As part of the 2022-2023 North Carolina state budget allotment, Bandys High School will receive $200,000 in state funding to be used for athletic facility improvements. The school’s athletic booster program, Trojan Country Athletic Boosters (TCAB), has been in discussions for the past year as to how it might acquire additional funding for improvements to the school’s athletic facilities. The aforementioned state funding will significantly impact the efforts to make subsequent projects by the TCAB a reality moving forward.

TCAB would like to give credit to and thank Coach Brian Ballard for his efforts to advocate on behalf of our Bandys student-athletes, fellow coaches, and the entire Bandys community. After learning of the needs, Coach Ballard reached out to state-level officials to solicit financial support. Coach Ballard’s requests garnered the attention of those in a position to turn those requests into reality. TCAB PastPresident Jamey Little shared, “I could not be more excited by the potential this funding offers us to move forward with our fundraising efforts to improve athletic facilities here at Bandys High School.” He thanks “Coach Ballard for his efforts to advocate for the booster program and students of Bandys High School” and looks “forward to working with fellow members of the boosters to continue to keep the momentum going.”

Athletic Director Brandon Harbinson commented, “On behalf of the school’s athletic department, I would like to thank Coach Ballard for being an advocate for our school, students, and the entire Bandys community. The state-allocated funding will not only support our student athletes, but also has the potential to benefit other programs as well. Coach Ballard’s efforts are an excellent example of what we like to refer to as ‘Rowing the Boat’ at Bandys High School.”

Bandys High School will work with district-level leadership to coordinate the allocation of the funding to support improvement projects and logistics. Most recently, Bandys High School partnered with Geo Surfaces to re-turf the school’s

daycare playground. The partnership saved Catawba County Schools approximately $7,000 in capital outlay funding that could be used for other projects across the system. CCS Superintendent, Dr. Matt Stover, after learning of the news of the state funding, commented, “On behalf of CCS, I would like to thank Coach Brian Ballard and state lawmakers for their support of the booster-sponsored projects. As a system, we continue to strive to meet the needs of all our students and schools. Any time our schools are able to acquire funding from state lawmakers, Federal funding, grants, fundraising, and other partnerships, I am excited to celebrate and to recognize their efforts. Catawba County Schools is proud of the efforts of Bandys High School, Coach Ballard, and the school’s booster program to take the steps needed to make their goals possible.”