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With a faint rumble of heavy equipment in the background, Schuylkill Haven Area School District officials and leaders from Lehigh Valley Health Network (LVHN) joined together to launch a new partnership. Ground has been broken for the LVHN Sports Performance Center on the campus of Schuylkill Haven Area School District. School officials began prepping the site for construction in early April.
“We are a small, but very proud school district,” says Scott Jacoby, President, Schuylkill Haven Area School District school board, who spoke at the ceremony. “We take great pride in our academic, athletic and arts programs.” Also, at the event, LVHN was recognized as “The Official Sports Medicine Provider of Hurricane Athletics.”
When complete in early 2022, the new LVHN Sports Performance Center will feature a 30,000 square foot sports performance center with a large turf surface and a divider curtain providing two “cross-court” sized fields. “This surface will be ideal for students for K-12 physical education classes, football, soccer, track and field, cross country, marching band, and cheerleading,” says Shawn Fitzpatrick, EdD, Superintendent of Schools.
Plans also include retractable batting cages available for baseball and softball use. A first-floor weight room and additional second-floor sports performance room will be available for athletes and will be staffed by an LVHN trainer and sports performance coach. A second-story track will feature a high-performance surface for running and walking, available for student-athletes with designated time slots for Schuylkill Haven Area School District residents to use.
“LVHN and Lehigh Valley Hospital (LVH)–Schuylkill are proud to be a partner on this project,” says Bill Reppy, LVH–Schuylkill President. “The impact it will have on students and the general public will simply be tremendous. It is exactly what you would expect from a sports performance center. And we hope it is exactly what you would expect from your Schuylkill County Health Partner, Lehigh Valley Hospital–Schuylkill, as we advance our mission to heal, comfort and care.”
Also representing LVHN at the groundbreaking ceremony was Brian Leader, Vice President of Orthopedics, LVHN, who structured the partnership, and Certified Athletic Trainer Mike Cerasoli. Stephen Evans, DO, with LVPG Sports Medicine & Orthopedics, also was recognized as team physician.