The Lake County Leader in Polson is reporting that Ronan High School will move down to Class B next year, leaving Northwestern A with only four schools: Whitefish, Polson, Columbia Falls and Libby.
Northwestern A was already the smallest conference in Class A after Bigfork left last year. Ronan’s departure now raises questions for the conference. Southwestern A, Central A and Eastern A all have six member schools each.
In separate news, the Montana High School Association has recommended adding a fifth class to the current four-class system, which consists of AA, A, B and C. The fifth would be D. MHSA Executive Director Mark Beckman told the Billings Gazette that the recommendation is not a formal proposal. It’s on the table for the member Class C schools to consider.
The MHSA will gather comments and then decide whether to move forward with a formal proposal, likely at its November 2011 meeting. After that, a change could be in place by the 2012-2013 school year.
While teams in the Flathead would be unaffected by a five-class system, they are definitely affected by Ronan’s decision. It will be interesting to see how things shake out for Northwestern A.