Stadium to feature giant new scoreboard

By Jared Lankford Special to the Monett Monthly

Monett students, fans and local businesses will soon benefit from a new video board planned for Burl Fowler Stadium.

Monett High School Activities Director Ty Goetz said the idea began after seeing other school districts install video boards at their athletic facilities. The district’s current scoreboard was installed in 2012 and is now approximately 14 years old.

“Seeing other high schools starting to get video boards got the wheels turning about what that possibility could look like for us,” Goetz said.

Goetz partnered with students in Monett’s GO CAPS business class to research manufacturers, request proposals and compare project costs. After reviewing the options, the district selected Nevco to provide the new board.

Goetz said the project is being funded without public tax dollars. Instead, local businesses are being offered advertising opportunities through sponsorship packages.

“When I approached businesses, I wanted to present it as an advertising opportunity rather than simply asking for a donation,” Goetz said.

The board will be positioned in the south end zone along the heavily traveled state highway, giving sponsors visibility beyond football games and other stadium events.

Goetz worked to obtain traffic information for the intersection near the football field. The data showed a significant amount of daily traffic passing the stadium.

Anchor sponsors will have permanent logos displayed along the bottom of the board throughout the year. Anchor and gold-level sponsors will also have advertisements shown electronically on the board at scheduled times each week.

Businesses could use the advertising space to display logos, promotions or employment announcements.

Goetz said four gold-level sponsorship opportunities remain available.

The new board will provide more than advertising and athletic-event functions. Goetz said the project includes a new speaker system designed to improve sound throughout the stadium.

The current speakers are located behind the home stands, making announcements difficult for some spectators to hear. The new system will project sound across the length of the football field and provide more consistent audio for both the home and visiting sides.

“One of the things I am most excited about is the speaker system,” Goetz said. “The new system will run the length of the football field, so both the home and away sides will have approximately the same sound.”

The board could also be used during graduation ceremonies to livestream the event, show photographs and display student information.

Goetz said students could eventually help operate the board and create videos, graphics and announcements. That experience could benefit students interested in multimedia production, communications or related college programs.

“We want to use it as much as possible,” Goetz said. “There are many opportunities beyond simply using it as a scoreboard on Friday nights.”

Other possible uses include student-organized movie nights and special community events.

Goetz said the project is intended to benefit the entire student body and community, rather than serving only the school’s athletic programs.

The goal is to have the new board installed and operational by the Cubs second home game this season.