[Allison K]

We are charging $50ish to cover uniforms, plus any travel costs incurred (bus, plane, hotel, food). We are fortunate to have eight districts and the state championship within 50 miles, so we don't start incurring travel costs until World level. Parent-power (carpooling) gets us where we need to be for most events so buses and other such expenses are a non-issue.

I plan to be proactive about making sure students aren't swayed by an inability to pay by submitting our student roster to the counseling office and asking if they can cross reference our roster with the list of students receiving free/reduced price lunch. I don't have a particular plan of action if there are any, but I imagine we can come up with a solution that eliminates or reduces their financial burden and saves face.

The poll I would be more interested in seeing results from is "How much does the average student on your team pay out of pocket to get your full team experience (i.e. - they attend all competition events) in A) a year when you do go to worlds and B) a year when you don't go to worlds." That would negate differences based upon what is and isn't included in the participation fee.