The 2024-25 athletic season will see a change for Perham Public Schools and how fans can view the games from the comfort of their own home. Perham Public Schools will be introducing a new online streaming home called the 549 Media, highlighting Perham Athletics and Arts events during the upcoming school year.

“Very few things in education coming out of the pandemic can be considered positive, but online streaming of school activities is certainly one of them,” Perham Public Schools Superintendent Mitch Anderson said. “The 2020-21 school year did not allow much for crowds or spectators, so districts were forced to get creative with how they could cover sports and other activities. This quickly became something that is almost expected now, and has been incredibly positive for our students, families, and fans. We look forward to continuing that kind of opportunity.”

The streaming world became quite popular during the COVID-19 Pandemic, when crowds were limited to slow the spread. One of the things that came from that was an agreement with Magnitude Sports, who was the streaming home for the Perham Yellowjackets for four seasons.

“We had a good agreement with Magnitude Sports the last four years and appreciate very much what they provided for Yellowjacket Activities online. Now, we have been provided an opportunity to bring our broadcasts in-house and have them produced within the district,” Perham Activities Director Erin Anderson said. “We see this as a project that will benefit our students, our families, our programs, and our community supporters. This will also give our students opportunities to be a part of it as well.”

Community Relations Director Jason Groth will preside over the operations of the 549 Media Network and serve as lead play-by-play for the network. He will be joined by a familiar cast of broadcasters, coaches, and community members.

“I am looking forward to this opportunity and think it will be a great thing for Perham Public Schools,” Groth said. “We noticed the interest is still high to have these events streamed to the public and this is a fantastic opportunity to ensure that these activities will be streamed. We have a lot of talent that take immense pride in producing these events and we are looking forward to continuing that with Perham Activities.”

This new product will continue to provide the coverage fans have grown accustomed to since the COVID-19 Pandemic but will feature a Yellowjacket flair with more focus on Perham students and members of the community.

As in the past and the goal of the Activities Department, viewing of these events will be free to the public. The 549 Media Network intends on using an advertising-based model to cover the expenses of these events. Last year, the Section girls and boys basketball playoffs that were streamed to the Perham Activities Page drew in more than 6,600 views for the three games.

Those who are interested in more information on the network or are interested in advertising with the 549 Media Network, please contact Jason Groth at jgroth@perham.k12.mn.us