Young archers aiming for Kentucky Tuesday, May 29, 2007 • BY SARA K. SATULLO • The Express-Times OXFORD TWP. | The students and staff at Oxford Central School are thrilled to be state archery champions. Now they want to top that. On June 9, two-dozen students will compete in the National Archery in Schools Program's nationwide competition in Louisville, Ky. The students took first place May 3 in the NASP state competition. This is the first year the state will compete in the national event. "This is unprecedented. It is definitely going to be a historic event," school board President Matt Hibbett said. "We have an opportunity to represent New Jersey on a national level." Two eighth-grade students, Kayle Bethune and Sharlette Carey, pulled the two highest overall state scores. "We were just trying to have fun. We didn't expect to excel that well," Kayle said. Two years ago, gym teacher Rob Causton applied for a $5,000 grant to get the program off the ground. Causton advocates the program because of the discipline and concentration skills it instills in students. "Every one of these students when you talk to them says it helps me focus in class, it is making me remember my homework more," Chief School Administrator Bob Magnuson said. "They are academically doing very well." The school's fourth- through eighth-grade students participate, although nationally the class is taught up to senior year of high school. Many students come in before school to practice or stay after school. "We excelled at it because we love our teachers," Sharlette said. On Friday, the school board convened an emergency meeting and voted to fund the trip. School officials estimate the trip will cost from $6,500 to $7,000. Already $2,000 has been raised and the school needs more donations. Two-dozen students, three school chaperones and nine parents will board a coach bus and make the 12-hour trek to Kentucky. They will compete against 100 schools from 20 other states. School board members strongly supported the program during the meeting. Discussions focused on the logistics not whether the students would participate. "This (going to nationals) is something that kids are going to be shooting for, no pun intended," Hibbett said. "Those B to C students are going to work that much harder next year to get in the shooting competition." The program was first launched in 2002 at 21 Kentucky middle schools. Since the founding, the program is now offered in 3,000 schools across 40 states and Australia. This is the first year NASP is holding an independent national event, previously it was linked with Kentucky's state archery shoot, said Jon Gauthier, NASP's assistant national competition director. Reporter Sara K. Satullo can be reached at 908-475-2174 or by e-mail at ssatullo@express-times.com.