Lopez Rec levy fails: School sports future hangs in the balance
Published 1:30 am Wednesday, May 13, 2026
The Lopez Island Park and Recreation District’s Proposition No. 1 levy has failed, and with it, the future of Lobo school sports is now in serious doubt.
Speaking in his role as superintendent of the Lopez Island School District, Brady Smith confirmed that this year’s athletic programs — including the current track and golf seasons — are fully funded through the end of the school year. But the picture for the 2026–2027 school year is far more precarious.
A race against time for next year
The school board has postponed passing its annual resolution committing to WIAA — the Washington Interscholastic Activities Association — until a clearer budget picture emerges. That resolution must be passed by May 27, and to do so comfortably, the district needs $100,000 in donations in hand or pledged.
But Smith was candid about the limits of this approach. “It’s unsustainable,” he said. Without a sustainable funding solution — and Lopez Rec’s levy was seen as the clearest path to one — the school faces the same crisis again next year, and every year after that. Jennifer Poole, a commissioner with Lopez Rec, a voter-established Parks and Recreation District serving Lopez Island, put the levy’s role in broader context, pointing first to the state policy she believes created the crisis. “The McCleary legislation disproportionately affected small school districts like ours, especially property-rich ones,” she said. “We pay more into the state pot of money because we’re a high property value district, but the state capped our ability to locally levy for enrichment programs. That created a really immediate and significant budget shortfall — one that is not felt as significantly by larger [small] districts like Orcas and San Juan.” She described the Lopez Rec levy as part of a broader response to that pressure: “The technique of using that district [Lopez Rec] to fund school sports is really one of many strategies to try and save our school from what is really an existential [state] funding crisis.” She also pointed to the end of pandemic-era federal relief as a key factor in the school’s current predicament. “There was kind of a short-term reprieve, ironically, in the COVID years because of special funding that was called ESSER (Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief),” she said. “That just created a moment in time where federal funds were able to kind of provide a bandaid. But just as in many areas of government, those funds are drying up and you’re seeing some of the funding problems emerge that were underlying.” Smith also noted that meaningful change at the state legislative level is needed to truly resolve the long-term funding gap for small, remote island school districts like Lopez, though he does not expect the state Legislature to act in the near term.
The WIAA transfer option — And why it won’t work
In the wake of the levy’s failure, some families explored whether Lopez student-athletes could commute back and forth to nearby schools — Orcas Island or Friday Harbor — to continue competing. Initial conversations led district officials to believe that a “hardship” transfer might be possible if Lopez eliminated its sports program. After reaching out to WIAA at the highest levels of eligibility review, Orcas Island received a definitive answer: It would not qualify.
WIAA rules recognize individual hardships only — the elimination of an entire school’s sports program does not qualify. As Smith explained, “Having an entire group of students denied sports is not considered a hardship. Having an individual student denied playing a sport would be.” Smith said he had to inform affected families directly: Transferring to compete next year is not available to them as a group.
More than a game
For many on Lopez Island, the stakes go well beyond the playing field. Lobo sports are woven into the identity of the island and the fabric of its school. “Imagining the island without Lobo sports is impossible to imagine,” Smith said. “It’s such an important part, not only of their high school experience, but of their future and of the community’s pride.”
Beyond pride and community spirit, athletics shape students’ futures. Cutting sports, Smith warned, would likely accelerate a decline in enrollment — and enrollment drives funding. “I think it would be the beginning of the end,” he said. “Our enrollment would spin down and I’d be very concerned about the future of the school.” Poole echoed that alarm. “If the school were to eliminate sports, students would be motivated to attend school elsewhere,” she said. “And that dip in enrollment could be the last nail in the coffin of the Lopez school.”
Looking ahead: November is critical
Smith made clear that November represents the next — and perhaps last realistic — window to put a levy before voters in time to provide sustainable athletic funding. Without a November levy, a funding gap of at least a year would follow. “It’s crucial that we pass a levy in November to support Lopez sports,” he said.
In the meantime, community members wishing to support Lopez student-athletes can donate through the Lopez Island Education Foundation, a registered 501(c)(3). Donations can be made online at lopezeducation.org/donate or by mailing a check to Lopez Island Education Foundation, P.O. Box 13, Lopez Island, WA 98262. The deadline to have funds in place is May 27.
