Bank continues school support

      U.S. Bank annually donates $1 million throughout 17 states for scholastic purposes. When it comes to Nevada, the 15th largest bank in the nation doesn't hold back.
      Nearly 20 percent -- $180,000 -- has been donated to the Nevada Interscholastic Activities Association for the 1998-99 school year, it was announced at the Clark County School District's monthly Athletic Administrators meeting.
      U.S. Bank, the title sponsor of state high school sporting events, enters its fifth year as the state's exclusive donor of money that will benefit all NIAA-sanctioned events.
      "The dollars are one thing, but the community involvement is much more," said Brent Colbry, the bank's district manager for Southern Nevada. "We just want to be involved as much as we can."
      Aside from scholarship fees and the promotion of athletic functions, the money also assists fund-raising programs and helps establish support for non-athletic activities, including student councils, debate teams and music departments.
      "We've been able to upgrade all of our programs," NIAA Executive Director Jerry Hughes said. "We've never had to raise our dues or raise our ticket prices for our annual events because of these sponsorships, either. Plus, we've been able to add to our staff. These are things that are sometimes unnoticeable, but they are in particular keeping kids in athletics."
      The NIAA, a nonprofit association that regulates the state's high school athletics, sponsors postseason play in divisional, zone and state tournaments in 18 boys and girls sports.
      With athletics being a big recipient of the sponsorship money, Hughes said many of the other activities involved with high school will begin to see the expansion of more donations.
      Colbry also said U.S. Bank customers will begin to see NIAA pamphlets distributed in their monthly statements, promoting its ongoing involvement with the state's high schools.
      "We try to let our own customers know we are involved with high schools and they should be also," Colbry said. "We hope we're viewed as part of the team, we're part of the community and part of each school. It's U.S. Bank and the NIAA, together."
      Other topics covered at the meeting included:
      -- FOOTBALL POLICE -- Larry McKay, director of athletics for the district, said Southern Nevada's three police units -- Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department, Henderson Police Department and the North Las Vegas Police Department -- will assist district officers within their jurisdiction for the upcoming football season, which begins Friday. Gang units will also be allocated to certain games, depending on potential situations.
      -- HARDWOOD WOES -- Palo Verde learned the hard way, and McKay is going to make sure other high-school gymnasiums won't suffer the same consequences.
      "You can make a gym floor sparkle and last," he said, "if you do the proper day-to-day maintenance."
      A recent mishap with water has left Palo Verde without the use of its gym and McKay has pledged to seek out professional help on the proper care of gym floors, alleviating extra cost on the district's behalf.
      "I don't profess to know, but we're going to get those people in so we can get some professional gym-floor maintenance," he said. "Basically the gym floor is the showplace of the school and it's important to make them look good."
      -- ADD PALO VERDE -- In addition to its gym-floor problems, Palo Verde also has soccer-field woes. Because the field is not ready to accommodate home games, all the Panthers' home matches will be held at Crossings Park. Both junior varsity and varsity will play at 6:30 p.m.
      -- TWO'S A CROWD? -- Too small for four leagues and too big for two leagues, that is McKay's feeling on the Southern Conference's current divisional situation with at least 17 teams participating in each sport.
      Currently split in the Sunset and Sunrise divisions, the conference will eventually break into quads called the Northwest, Southwest, Southeast and Northeast.
      "It's in place, but we also have to make sure that in each sport, we have a legitimate league," McKay said. "It will affect the postseason and my personal philosophy is I don't think we can have a league with four teams in it."
      -- NEW KIDS ON THE BLOCK -- Three additional high schools will join the Southern Conference with students in grades nine through 11 for the 1999-2000 school year. They will participate at the varsity level immediately, unlike Palo Verde and Mojave, which both started two years ago with freshman only, adding new freshmen each year since.
      Both Palo Verde and Mojave, which opted to not count their league games this football season, participated at the freshman and junior varsity levels the past two seasons with ninth graders the first year and freshmen and sophomores last year.
      The three new schools will also have the option to play an independent football schedule in their first season.