For her senior project, Johnstown High School student, Caitlin Shroyer investigated whether Johnstown High has put academics second to athletics. Channel 6 News spoke with both caitlin and superintendent Barbara Parkins about this issue.

There's no doubt high school football games can make people's day and sometimes weeks, but are sports like football valued more than academics in the Johnstown School District?

Caitlin Shroyer, Johnstown High School Senior, said, "I think a lot of schools favor athletics just because they bring money into the schools."

But superintendent Barbara Parkins disagrees, "The answer's no...I don't know why there's a perception that athletics are perceived to play an emphasis in decision making or spending of school districts."

Even so Shroyer feels the 36-thousand dollar budget increase athletics received could go to things like new books.

Shroyer said, "Books are in bad condition...Some of them are really, really bad. Others are ok, but ones that are new are usually in short supply and aren't enough so, either don't get one, bad shape, outdated, taped together."

The superintendent says she has monthly meetings with her principals and if new books need to be purchased, they are. But Caitlyn's argument doesn't stop here.

She handed out questionnaires to students and teachers at Johnstown High. This is not a scientific poll, but 83 percent of the 24 students polled agreed that sports are favored over academics. 17 of the 18 teachers also agreed. The same question was asked to 24 students at Garnet Valley High School which ranks among the top in standardized test scores. Eight-eight percent of them said academics was favored more.

Shroyer said, "It is definitely very unbalanced at this time and needs to be fixed."

Parkins said, "We do very much value the academics and have a large number of students participating in programs for high achievers. "

Johnstown has not always been known for academic excellence. Johnstown High ranks in the bottom 14 percent in the state scholastic, P.S.S.A. scores, but those scores have been improving.

Parkins said, "Usually a one or 2 percent climb is significant. We climbed a little over 9 percent last year, so were getting there."

Caitlin says even though she is graduating she wants to see her underclassmen succeed.

Shroyer said, "You can't play football, the chances that you're going into that is so slim. You need an education to back it up."

Superintendent Parkins says that in order to be eligible for games, the athletes have to maintain their grades.