Coaches quit to protest firing

[Red November]

Coaches quit to protest firing

By Molly Dugan and Melody Gutierrez -- Bee Staff Writers

Published 2:15 am PDT Friday, May 20, 2005

 

The surprise dismissal of Center High School's head football coach roiled the Antelope campus Thursday, prompting student protests, a mass resignation of coaches and student activity advisers, and threats of a recall against the two district trustees who ousted him.

 

As word filtered out that Digol J'Beily would not return as football coach next fall, about 250 of the school's 1,650 students marched to the Center Unified School District offices Thursday morning to protest the late-night board action. Football players wore T-shirts saying "Free J'Beily," and other students carried signs with messages of support for the coach.

 

"It's a big mess right now," said Carey Winborne, an assistant football coach who was among two dozen teachers and advisers who resigned from their extracurricular posts. "If (J'Beily) isn't approved, then we don't want to coach. We will support him 100 percent."

 

Two of the trustees called the decision a vendetta against J'Beily by trustee Scott Rodowick, who they say was angered three years ago when the coach would not make Rodowick's son the team's first-string quarterback.

 

In declining to address the issues Thursday, Rodowick said: "I cannot comment on personnel matters that involve employees of the district."

 

J'Beily, who is contacting a lawyer to determine his options, said he was overwhelmed by the support from his colleagues. "It's humbling," he said. "The people who know are the students and they're standing up for me."

 

Among those submitting letters of resignation are the entire football coaching staff, the school's athletic director, the long-time baseball coach, both cheerleading coaches, the girls soccer coach, two volleyball coaches, the golf coach, the track coach, the Special Olympics adviser and the academic decathlon adviser.

 

Most of those are teachers at the school. None resigned their teaching jobs.

 

Athletic coaching positions come to the school board for approval every year as a routine matter. The schools recommend people to the superintendent, who in turn makes recommendations to the trustees.

 

According to Winborne, the vote Wednesday to oust J'Beily occurred in open session. While the board approved a block of fall coaches in a single vote, they decided to vote separately on each member of the football staff. J'Beily needed three votes to retain the position.

 

Trustees Rodowick and Teri Ferguson voted against keeping him. Nancy Anderson and Libby Williams voted for him.

 

The deciding vote belonged to Raymond Bender, who is J'Beily's father-in-law. He said Thursday he abstained because he felt his relationship was a conflict of interest.

 

Winborne said neither Rodowick nor Ferguson provided the audience with any explanation for their votes Wednesday.

 

On Thursday, Anderson said the move was "an abuse of power."

 

"(Rodowick) has made it his personal mission to attack Mr. J'Beily every single time his name comes up," Anderson said. "It's a silly vendetta from one board member that has nothing to do with Mr. J'Beily's ability."

 

The trustee said several community leaders indicated they were looking into a possible recall of Rodowick and Ferguson.

 

Bender said Rodowick made his displeasure with the coach widely known.

 

"He's made comments to other players that were over visiting his son that 'I'm going to get even. I'm going to make him lose his job,' " Bender said. "He's crazy about this thing. He won't let it go."

 

Ferguson could not be reached for comment.

 

Last year, J'Beily filed a claim against Rodowick for harassment, trustees and J'Beily said, but dropped it when Rodowick appeared to be backing off.

 

"This is vicious," Bender said of the decision. "You can ruin someone's career by doing this. It's a shame."

 

A history teacher at the school, J'Beily, 36, was an assistant football coach for more than five years before becoming head coach in fall 2004. He led the Cougars to the section playoffs last season with a 6-4 record.

 

Varsity sophomore quarterback Jason Olesen, 15, said he thought the board's decision to oust his coach was selfish and for the wrong reasons.

 

"Under the circumstances I would play football but I wouldn't necessarily want to," Olesen said. "It seems tainted. I don't want to play for anyone else. He's the greatest guy. He's the best coach I have ever had."

 

Anderson said she worries about the future of extracurricular activities at the school.

 

"It really puts any sports we have in danger of not having teams," she said.

 

Scott Loehr, assistant superintendent of the district, said he could not comment on the resignations but added: "Our intention is to continue with athletic programs."

 

J'Beily also started a youth program to prepare kids for high school football. The summer program, which has 60 kids signed up, will be canceled if the decision is not overturned.

 

"The kids are devastated," Anderson said. "This is a teacher they love. They can see that it's unfair."

 

J'Beily, who moved to the area from Lebanon as an 8-year-old, was educated in area schools and was a quarterback and baseball player at Center High. He returned after college to teach and later married his high school sweetheart, Tamara, who is also a teacher in the district.

 

J'Beily's supporters said the football coach picks the best players, not the most politically connected.

 

Baseball coach Jeff Wise, who has coached at the Antelope campus for 17 years, said the board is setting a dangerous precedent with its decision.

 

"I don't want to be sitting on pins and needles if I have a board member's kid on my team," said Wise, who also resigned his coaching position.

 

Wise said the resignation of athletic director Bob Eason, who started as the schools' first coach 20 years ago, is like "taking the heart out" of Center High.

 

Others said they were moved to action by J'Beily's commitment to Center High.

 

"He puts countless hours into that (football) program," said Alex Perez, girls soccer coach. "I can't be a part of an institution led by such board members who can fire without just cause. It could happen to me and that's why I refuse to be a part of that."

 

Perez, who is a health instructor at Center High, said he hopes the decision is overturned so he can continue to coach.

 

"It's really a sad day for Center High and the district."

 

The next scheduled meeting of the Center Unified School District board of trustees is at 6 p.m. June 15.

[Eric the Red]

As an educator myself this type of politics is in every school district and it needs to be addressed. This is not something we should just have to "deal" with. Administartors are the ones that need to step up, but they wont, especially in smaller towns they make so much more money than everyone else, they don't dare "rock the boat". They kiss the boards uneducated, unexperienced asses. Some parents are huge a$$hole$ too.

[bigredtoad]

Remember when STeve fired Frank to protest Nebraska sucking? That ruled.