BETHEL – The SAD 44 board last Monday approved establishing a community committee to study bringing back a football program at Telstar High School.

The panel will look into raising money to start a program and operating it three years without district funding.

Superintendent David Murphy said the recommendation to establish the committee came from an ad-hoc committee that has been studying the issue for several months.

“No determination was made by that committee as to actually reinstating a football program at Telstar,” he said, “but they did recommend that we move ahead by establishing a second committee to look into raising funds and evaluating community interest and support for bringing football back.”

Murphy estimated the cost at about $70,000. It is hoped it would come from capital fund-raising and private pledges instead of the school budget.

Murphy said he has found no documentation on when football was part of the school, but he heard it was in the late 1970s and early 1980s.

“I don’t know why it was dropped. I have heard several reasons, including the cost and lack of interest, but there is nothing written in our records to show those reasons to be fact,” he said.

He said there seems to be quite a bit of interest among students to bring it back.

Anyone interested in serving on the committee is asked to call the superintendent’s office at 824-2185 for more information.

SAD 44 includes the towns of Andover, Bethel, Greenwood, Newry and Woodstock.