New OKCPS stadium named to honor McLaughlin family
OKLAHOMA CITY (KFOR) — The Oklahoma City School Board voted to name the new stadium that will soon be home to John Marshall High School and the new Belle Isle High School. The name honors a family who has worked tirelessly to make sure more students have access to sports.
"It's going to be phenomenal," said Eddie Wright, OKCPS Athletic Director.
The new North Regional Stadium will soon break ground, now with a special name, the McLaughlin Family Stadium, in honor of Tim and Liz McLaughlin.
While the couple is out of the country, their organization Fields and Futures, works to promote youth sports particularly in the OKCPS district.
"They're family's thumbprint is all over this organization," said David Crynes, the executive director of Fields and Futures.
For years, Wright has worked closely with the organization. He said it all started with a mission 11 years ago.
"Tim McLaughlin hopped on a bus to tour the city and in doing so he found some fields that were sub par," said Wright.
Around 70 projects and millions of dollars later, the organization's focus remains the same.
"The science has proven there. If kids are part of a team, if they're around a caring adult, they're going to stay in class. They're going to be held accountable," said Crynes.
The McLaughlin Family Stadium is one of the bond projects approved by voters in November 2022.
It will be home to the John Marshall Bears and the Belle Isle Bulls, the new high school also approved of in the bond.
Currently, John Marshall plays at Taft Stadium. Wright said this new location will be far more convenient to all schools in the northern part of the district.
"Right now we have 14 middle schools sharing four stadiums," said Wright. "The more facilities we have the more opportunities we have for the kids to play."
"We just want to give kids the opportunity to participate," said Crynes.
Fields and Futures said instead of focusing on building new facilities, their now more focused on programming to get more students to play sports.
OKCPS hopes to finish the stadium by 2026.