THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Thursday, August 10, 1995 TAG: 9508100616
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C5 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY BILL LEFFLER, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: PORTSMOUTH LENGTH: Short : 46 lines
Eastern Region principals, meeting at Churchland High School on Wednesday afternoon, endorsed a realignment plan to merge the three Portsmouth schools into the Eastern District and move Nansemond River into the Southeastern District with the Chesapeake schools.
The proposal, designated as Plan 2 of the Virginia High School League, was chosen over another that would divide Group AAA, Group AA and Group A into equal thirds of 95 schools each.
Deep Creek principal Nathan T. Hardee, who will represent the region on the 13-member Redistricting and Reclassification Committee when it meets in Charlottesville on Aug. 22, was empowered to vote differently ``if Plan 2 changes significantly.''
VHSL executive director Ken Tilley attended the meeting.
``It went pretty much as I thought it would go,'' Tilley said. ``Schools in the Eastern Region prefer the option of playing up.''
Under Plan 1, Wilson and Norcom would become Group AA schools, Bayside and Tallwood would leave the Beach District and join the Eastern District and the Peninsula District would move to the Central Region.
Tilley said this is the third region meeting to be held.
``It's pretty split so far,'' he said. ``So far there seems to be a leaning toward Plan 2.''
Tilley said whatever plan is approved will go into effect for the 1996-97 school year.
``It will be a three-year plan,'' he said. ``This will enable us to get our rotation in sync with other states where many of our teams play.''
The VHSL has been operating in two-year cycles.
Raymond Hale, chairman of the Eastern Region principals and principal at Churchland High School, said he felt Plan 2 was the better of the two.
``This will take us out of the Southeastern District and will be ending some rivalries we have had for nearly 30 years,'' he said. ``But there is no interest in supporting the other plan that was proposed.'' by CNB