By Andrew Terry
Staff Reporter
The Amarillo College board of regents approved an agreement with the Sod Poodles to allow the AC baseball team to play home games at Hodgetown at their regular board meeting Feb. 23.
The contract approves the AC baseball team to play at Hodgetown in the spring seasons of 2023-2025. The cost to play at the stadium for a whole season of eight to nine home games would be “between $50,000 to $57,000,” according to Chris Sharp, vice president of business affairs. However, the agreement does not include scrimmages or non conference games.
“We get full use of Hodgetown, the field, the visiting locker room, indoor batting cages and the advertising and media,” Sharp said. The agreement does not approve the use of the Sod Poodle locker room by the AC baseball team; instead the AC team is allowed to use the locker room usually given to visiting teams. The teams playing against AC are not given a locker room.
The sod poodles will provide all of the necessary employees required for game days according to Sharp. Additionally the Sod Poodles have agreed to sell Amarillo College athletic merchandise at the Sod Poodle team store.
In the regents next regular board meeting on March 22 the regents will vote on a proposal that would provide telehealth services to students.
The services would allow students to see a medical doctor virtually for physical health appointments as well as mental health appointments with a licensed professional behavioral specialist.
“We believe that there are 876 students that need mental health services on our campus, and right now we have the capacity to serve 350 of those students,” Denese Skinner, vice president of student affairs, said. “It’s about retention and equity. It’s about removing life barriers and the culture of caring,” Skinner said.
The funding for the telehealth program would come out of AC’s CARES funds provided by the federal government as part of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic security act or CARES act.
If the board of regents approve the telehealth proposal, officials hope students can start using the services later this spring.
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