Galesburg High School is getting new video boards and scoreboards at Van Dyke Field and John Thiel Gym this summer — replacing aging equipment that has been failing and opening the door to instant replay, live scoring, and community recognition at Silver Streaks events.
The Galesburg District 205 Board of Education will consider a $276,474 contract with Nevco Sports at Monday night’s meeting. If approved, the equipment would be installed over the summer and ready for the 2026-27 school year.
The project addresses aging equipment at both venues that has been creating problems. The scoreboard at Van Dyke Field, home of Silver Streaks football, has been unreliable. The video board in Thiel Gym, which hosts basketball and volleyball, is nine years old and already experiencing issues.
“The scoreboard at the football field is basically about done,” Superintendent John Asplund told WGIL. “It doesn’t work all the time. We have to get a new one.”
In looking at options, Athletic Director Nick Young explored packaging the football and gym upgrades together — a move Asplund said resulted in a more cost-effective solution than replacing the equipment individually.
What’s planned
At Van Dyke Field, the project calls for a full-color LED video display with a scoreboard component, a custom arched truss, and delay-of-game timers. The outdoor video board would measure approximately 12-and-a-half feet high by 22 feet wide.
Inside Thiel Gym, the project includes a full-color indoor video display, two replacement scoreboards with shot clocks, an LED scorer’s table with video capabilities on the front, and two static scorer’s tables.
“Both venues have aging systems that have been causing us issues the past two school years,” Young told WGIL. “The addition of video capabilities really provided us opportunities even beyond games.”
Young cited the ability for Multimedia students to engage with the programming as one example. Asplund noted the video board at Van Dyke Field would also enhance events like graduation.
“I think it would really be great when we have graduation outside to have a video board out there that we can do some extra things for the kids,” Asplund said. “There’s a lot of great things you can do — order of events, a running score for track. There’s just a lot of things the video board can do that we haven’t been able to do.”
Monday’s vote
The contract does not require competitive bidding, as Asplund said specialized equipment of this type falls outside the normal bidding scope. The board will be asked to approve the agreement at Monday’s meeting.
The Galesburg District 205 Board of Education meets at 7 p.m. Monday. Click here for the full agenda packet.
