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Serving Northern St. Louis County, Minnesota

Give coach a fair shot

In Burnett case, ISD 2142 school board could run afoul of new state law

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Parents who show interest in their students’ success in school should be prized. Research indicates that parents who take an active role in their students’ education have a positive impact.

But there’s a difference between supporting your child and defending him or her from any constructive criticism. Blaming others for your students’ shortcomings — whether its bad behavior on the bus or failure in the classroom — only makes matters worse. Kids who never experience adversity or disappointment are ill-equipped for real life outside the classroom.

The problem is especially pervasive in sports, where the situation is so dire that the state of Minnesota took the unusual step of banning schools from firing coaches based solely on parent complaints. Parents still have a say, but the board must consider other factors — such as annual evaluations — before taking action on a coach.

That process failed to be followed by the St. Louis County School Board, which took Tom Burnett’s name off a list of coach candidates effectively eliminating him from contention for head volleyball coach at the North Woods School.

Burnett has a strong enough case to litigate the matter. But suing the school district for a job that pays $4,000 is something Burnett is loath to do. His best bet is to plead his case before the board at a hearing, which he has requested.

One of the more troubling problems with Burnett’s dismissal was the involvement of Business Manager Kim Johnson. Johnson and her husband sent numerous emails blasting Burnett, who coaches their daughter among other students. The implication, true or not, is that a school official with a great deal of power pressured Burnett to do her bidding or risk the consequences.

Just as disturbing is board member Dan Manick’s decision to bring this issue to the board without investigating the truthfulness of the complaints.

Manick never informed board member Nancy Wall Glowaski, who also represents the North Woods School attendance area of his plans, nor did he meet with Coach Burnett to discuss the issues raised by parents. That’s surprising, since Manick was unfairly targeted for dismissal from his baseball coaching position a few years ago and should have recognized the situation with Burnett for what it is.

Had Manick investigated further, he would have found that both Superintendent Steven Sallee and North Woods Athletic Director John Jirik had recommended renewing Burnett’s coaching contract. In addition, he would have learned that Burnett’s teams earned the Arrowhead Championship for nine of the 11 years he has coached and won the Section Championship in 2012-13. Burnett also commands regional respect from his peers, earning Section Coach of the Year honors twice.

Has he been able to please all of the parents all of the time? Certainly, not. No coach can, and they shouldn’t even try given the unrealistic demands of some parents. We’re reminded that it wasn’t long ago that a parent called the police on former Cook Volleyball Coach Loretta Rankila because she wasn’t playing their child in a particular game. It was incidents like that prompted the Legislature to enact new laws to protect coaches from overzealous parents. With such protections now in place, throwing Burnett under the bus in this instance is not only unjustified, it could well be illegal.

The school board owes Burnett a fair chance. The public can help ensure that happens by showing up for Burnett’s hearing on July 25. The hearing begins at 5 p.m. in the district office in Virginia.