Before Chad Hanson coached a game for the Heritage High School girls basketball team last season, he had problems with two parents.
While parent pressure on coaches has long been a staple of high school athletics — and can lead to positive change in the case of abusive coaches — The Post interviewed more than 15 coaches and administrators who said it has been amplified over the past several years, and often has nothing to do with tamping down an out-of-control coach.
In a letter sent to HHS principal Stacey Riendeau, Sanchez wrote that Hurley and Schrader showed “shameless cronyism, and the pressure tactics, the bullying, the shaming, and the guilting of Chad Hanson for this decision was a great sin.” Sanchez, Schrader, Hurley, Riendeau and Littleton Public Schools all declined interview requests when contacted by The Post. In a statement, Sanchez cited “progressively abusive ways” employed by the coach throughout the season as the reason for his actions.
Coaches say they need administrators who are willing to take a stand in an uncomfortable situation with parents, but that because of the political nature of administrative positions, that support can be tough to come by. That AD also acknowledged the lines of communication between coach, parent and administration can quickly break down because “parents are naturally seeing things through a different lens.”
“For all the right reasons, I cut her,” Hanson said. “For all the wrong reasons, wanted me to put her back on the team. She made it seem like I made a mistake by cutting a girl the entire coaching staff agreed didn’t deserve a spot.” The parents accused Gunn of using divide-and-conquer tactics among his players, creating and sponsoring a bullying/hazing environment and using inappropriate language, among other complaints. The school officially dismissed him March 22. Two days later, more than 30 Air Academy students held a walk-out to protest his firing.
According to emails, documents and letters obtained by The Post, drama engulfed Gunn’s team for the majority of the season as the Kadets made a run to the Class 5A Great 8. The parent-led issues that engulfed Hanson and Gunn is often more pronounced in high school basketball programs in particular, due to the popularity of the sport, its high profile and the fact that there’s only five starting varsity spots.
“Maybe there needs to be a coaches’ union of some type, or those contracts need to be made much more in the manner of teachers’ contracts,” Pachner said. “Because the truth is, why would people invest their lives in coaching when they can be removed at the whims of parents who complain, almost always, about style, playing time, winning or roles within a program?”
Willahan also said he had some “good conversations” with the parent group that pressured him, despite the fact he feels unfairly maligned by a process that included an array of meetings between the parents and district administration that did not include Willahan. The plan outlined a number of requirements the parents wanted Johnston to abide by in order to be renewed as a coach each year, including guaranteeing winning a certain amount of league games and input on all coaching hires.
Eventually, Riendeau issued Hanson a formal letter of direction on March 8, ordering the coach to cease all interactions with players and families in the girls basketball program. The evening of Feb. 1, Sanchez emailed Schrader with the subject line “Report of Chad Hanson’s Abusive Behavior on 1/31/23 and Request that He Be Removed Immediately.”
Then, on Feb. 6., Schrader emailed the community again, letting them know of Hanson’s resignation. That email contained a two-sentence statement by Hanson that the coach says HHS administration wrote for him. The Post spoke with two since-graduated Heritage players who were senior captains on the team, Addie Shipley and Emma Texel.
But Texel said nothing Hanson did was outside the normal bounds of coaching, including Hanson yelling at the team during the Jan. 31 locker room incident, and that the school’s administration “was definitely trying to sweep his forced resignation under the rug and make sure no one heard about .”Coaches are fed up with what they see as habitual parent interference.
United States Latest News, United States Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Source: FoxNews - 🏆 9. / 87 Read more »
Source: FOXSports - 🏆 280. / 63 Read more »
Source: FOXSports - 🏆 280. / 63 Read more »
Source: CBSNews - 🏆 87. / 68 Read more »