East Central Schools Community Education

Welcome to the 2025 Fastpitch Softball Season! Youth softball players and parents, East Central Youth Softball will continue to participate in the East Central Rivers Youth Summer Softball program. This is a traveling softball program and a great opportunity for our area youth. There is no school-provided transportation, and games are played in towns such as Milaca, Hinckley, Pine City, Isle, Oglivie, Braham, and Mora. Carpooling to games is common so please reach out if transportation is an issue. Typically, we play each school twice so half of our games should be at our home fields. Games will typically start at 6 pm. This year we plan to have three teams. 10U is for players who are in 3rd & 4th Grade (24/25 school year). If your player turns 11 before 5/31/25 they should register for the 12U team. 12U is for players who are in 5th & 6th Grade (24/25 school year). If your player turns 13 before 5/31/25 they should register for the 14U team. 14U is for players who are in 7th & 8th Grade (24/25 school year). If your player turns 15 before 5/31/25 they will not be eligible to play. Players must play in their age band, this is to help build skills across the entire age group. Mandatory Family/Team Meeting: Coaches invite parents and players to a team meeting on Tuesday March 18 at 5:00. Team expectations, fundraising information, and more information about what to expect in the upcoming season will be discussed. It is recommended that all players and at least one parent attend. Practices: We hope to begin practice in late April (weather permitting) and we will communicate directly with parents about how that will look as the time gets closer. Spring schedules are very tight with limited fields and possible weather. We would intend to have two practices per week beginning at 5:30 pm. Those in Junior High Softball will begin practice after the school season is over. A Heja link will be sent to registered parents for notification information. Games: Games will start the beginning of June and wrap up with an end-of-season tournament in mid-July. In the past, all games have been on Tuesday or Thursday evenings, although that is subject to change after the league meeting in late spring. Fees: We will be ordering new jerseys this year. Fees are $100 per player. If fees are a concern for your family, please check out the Pine County YOGA grants which can help pay player fees for sports. Players will be expected to provide their own cleats, black pants, and a glove. REGISTRATION DEADLINE: Please register by 3:00 pm on March 31. Please register and pay online at: https://eastcentral.ce.eleyo.com/ Thank you and we look forward to a season of fun, learning, and teamwork! Coaches are TBD. Please let us know if you are interested in being a coach. If you have any questions, please send all communications to Community Education at ce@eastcentral.k12.mn.us

Click HERE for Audition Info Just Keep Swimming, Just Keep Swimming.... Join us for an underwater adventure as Miss Amber leads us through the spectacular world of "Finding Nemo Jr". Prepare to be captivated by colorful characters, catchy tunes, and a heartwarming story that will transport you down to the big blue world. Join the exciting fun today - don't miss out on this underwater adventure! Finding Nemo Jr. Open to students 2nd grade - 12th grade, and community area students. Rehearsals will be June 16, 17, 18, 20, 24, 25 and 26th from 12:30-4:30. Dress rehearsal will be June 23rd from 12:30 - 5:30 (Student pick up at 5:30) The performances will be June 27th at 7pm, and June 28th at 2pm. Auditions for speaking roles will be on 5/27 from 3-6, and 5/28 from 2:30-4. Students only need to attend 1 audition, they do not need to come for both days. Call Backs will be on 5/29 from 3-5:30 (this list will be posted and emailed to all families on 5/28 after auditions) 50 total student enrollments please. (If this fills up quickly, I will look at opening up more spots) Cost is $65 to register which includes a t-shirt (Each enrolled student will receive 2 free tickets to the show) *Students need to be able to attend all rehearsals, the dress rehearsal, and both performances.* Grades/Ages: 2nd Grade - 12th Grade (24/25 school year) Cost: $65 which includes a t-shirt (Each student will receive 2 free tickets to the show) Important times and dates: Rehearsal Times: June 16, 17, 18, 20, 24, 25 and 26th from 12:30-4:30pm (No Rehearsal on June 19th to observe the holiday) June 23rd is Dress Rehearsal from 12:30-5:30 (Student pick up at 5:30) Pick-up at Flagpole doors Showtime Performances: June 27th, performance is at 7pm. *All students are there at 4:30pm to get ready for the show.* June 29th performance is at 2pm *All students are there at 11am to get ready for the show.* Other Information: Please bring a snack and a sealed water bottle for your child each day, we will take a break during each rehearsal. Your child should have a light dinner before the show on Friday. We will be looking for adult volunteers to help w/ costumes, & supervision- please email abenner@eastcentral.k12.mn.us with any interest.

Traveling Youth Baseball League Grades 2-10 It is offered for grades 2-10 as the league states. East Central Youth Baseball will continue to participate in the Central MN Baseball League and will playing schools such as Hinckley, Mora, Pine City, Rush City, etc. Traveling baseball is a commitment but such a great opportunity for our area youth. The general time requirements are 2-3 evenings per week with games and practices. This is not a school sponsored event, so transportation is not provided to games. Communication is key as weather decisions can occur last minute. We do use an app that we have all parents/guardians download as our key communication tool. What does this mean to you as a player/ parent? 9U is for students currently in 2rd-3rd grade (24-25 school year) but also must be no older than 9 as of May 31, 2025. If your child turns 10 before 5/31/25 they should register for the 11U team. 11U is for students currently in 4th or 5th grade (24-25 school year) but also must be no older than 11 as of May 31, 2025. If your child turns 12 before 5/31/25 they should register for the 13U team. 13U is for students currently in 6th or 7th grade (24-25 school year) but also must be no older than 13 as of May 31, 2025. If your child turns 14 before 5/31/25 they should register for the 16U team. 16U is for students currently in 8th, 9th or 10th grade (24-25 school year) but also must be no older than 16 as of May 31, 2025. If your child turns 17 before 5/31/25 they are not able to participate. Practices start in late April to early May (WEATHER PERMITTING) and we will communicate that directly with you as we figure out field time (and potential indoor gym time). Spring sports schedules get tight, especially with any spells of bad weather so we do end up having to be flexible at times with our practice days, times and possibly practice location. The regular season games will run from late-May through mid-July. The age brackets are based on your player’s current grade level (24-25 school year). All regular season games will be played during the weeknights at 6:30pm (unless there’s a makeup game) and run about two hours. 9U (2nd-3rd grade) typically on M/W 11U (4th/5th grade) typically on Tu/Th 13U (6th/7th grade) typically on M/W 16U (8-10th grade) typically on Tu/Th We want to give as many kids a chance to play as possible but if the team gets too large, we reserve the right to implement an alternate game play schedule. Registration fees for the regular season: Having a team jerseys is required, however, we will use the same jerseys as last year. If yours fits from last year, you may choose to wear that one again. Fees per player (cleats, baseball glove, hat and baseball pants are not included in the fee): No jersey needed $60 If Jersey needed $90 If family finances make this difficult, please let us know Thank you and we look forward to another season of fun, learning and teamwork! If you have any questions, please send me (Genny Swenson) an email or a text. Email: Genevieve.m.swenson@gmail.com or Text: 612.402.7331 ONCE THE SEASON GETS CLOSER DATES FOR PRATICE AND GAMES WILL BE SENT OUT BY GENNY.