During Tense Meeting, Saline Board Approves Independent Review of Athletic Department
By a 4-3 vote, the Saline Board of Education approved an independent third-party review of the Athletic Department.
Background
This fall the school district discovered that a player on the Saline High School varsity football team no longer lived in the district, which makes him ineligible to play for the team. The player had appeared in the team's first games, which had all been won by Saline. The Athletic Department reported the issue to the MHSAA. The MHSAA determined Saline must forfeit those games. Saline went 6-3 instead of 9-0, causing Saline to lose the SEC Red title and costing Saline at least two home football games. Saline's season ended Nov. 8 in a loss at Belleville.
The Athletic Department has come under fire for two reasons. Some say they should have caught the residency issue before the season started. Others say they shouldn't have reported the issue to the state. At the request of football players and their parents, the district appealed the forfeits but the MHSAA denied the appeal.
Since then, the Athletic Department, under the mentorship of longtime Chelsea Superintendent Wayne Welton, has been reviewing practices and procedures.
Parents from other sports have had issues. The Saline Girls Lacrosse coach recently resigned after complaints from parents. Issues with parents and coaches have dogged the Saline athletic department (and every athletic department) for years.
Football Players
Members of the Saline High School football team once again spoke during the first public comment segment of Tuesday's Board of Education meeting. Speakers included Cruz Hanson, Ayden Burton, Jack Bersuder, Isaac Furlong, Coleman Ross and James Rush. Many spoke of the need for accountablity. Rush noted that Athlectic Director Ashley Mantha has not addressed the team.
"We as student athletes have had to take the burden upon ourselves and no adult has been held accountability," Rush said.
Leah Mueller, drum major for the Saline High School marching band, said the impact went beyond football. She said that other students who perform at football games were also deprived of opportunities to perform at home games.
"It it also impacted more than 200 kids from the marching band, color guard and the dance team. All of us spent several hours practicing each week and football games are where we perform and we only get to go to the home games," Mueller said.
Parents Had Filed a Complaint Against Laatsch, Mantha
In October, about 75 parents signed a complaint against Superintendent Steve Laatsch and AD Mantha. Most of the "facts" in the complaint had been stated in public previously. There were two basic complaints.
One complaint alleges Laatsch retaliated against the mother of the ineligible football player. It says on the day he learned of the mother's complaint against him, he had AD Mantha self-report to the MHSAA after a six-day investigation. The act of self-reporting impacted the ineligible player, the team and coaching staff.
The second complaint claims it was reckless and/or grossly negligent to hire Mantha in the first place. It claims Mantha was not qualified to manage an athletic department like Saline's. Mantha is criticized for failing to support student-athletes, failing to advocate for them, not understanding MHSAA guidelines, ignoring requests to meet with teams and not taking accountability.
The letter asked the Board of Education to order an independent inquiry into the allegations and into the AD's handling of the matters.
"We do not feel comfortable with AD Mantha remaining in her current role, as all trust has been lost," the letter states. "In addition, we request that there be an investigation into how Superintendent Laatsch
handled this situation and timing of the report to the MHSAA. Further, we ask that both
of these investigations are handled by third parties with no involvement by anyone in the
district, including legal counsel for SAS. If the Board of Education deems it appropriate
to ensure a full and unbiased investigation be completed, we ask that any and all
actions, such as Superintendent Laatsch and/or AD Mantha being put on administrative
leave while this investigation is pending, be considered."
Discussion on Open Discussion
Originally the board planned to discuss the issue in closed session. Trustee Tim Austin moved to make a motion asking for the board direct an independent, third-party review of the Athletic Department. That led to a 45-minute discussion.
Austin's original motion, seconded by Board VP Jennifer Steben, received applause from the audience.
There was clearly tension between board members throughout the discussion. When it appeared Board President Michael McVey was potentially working to keep the issue in closed session, Austin said, "This is a board of seven, not a board of one, so I think we need to vote on this."
McVey said the board's responsibility is the superintendent, not the athletic department.
Secretary Jennifer Miller said she thought a public discussion was out of order. She said she wanted to protect employees from having privacy violated and putting the board at risk of litigation. She said there would be nothing stopping the board from discussing the motion in closed session and then discussing and voting in public.
Steben said she understands what issues may be discussed publicly and privately.
"My intention is not to discuss an HR issue. It is a process discussion, any HR issues should be addressed in closed session and I see that we have that on the agenda for tonight," Steben said.
She also reminded the board that at its last meeting it voted for a third-party review of eligibility and the enrollment process.
Austin's motion got bogged down in arguments about process. He brought it back to the motion.
"I am asking that we as a district, we need to improve," Austin said. He recalled a 2018 report on the district.
McVey said he thought this issue target in this case was a complaint against Laatsch and his management and supervision of the athletic department.
The Board voted 5-2 to put the motion on the agenda.
Laatsch Opens Discussion on Review
McVey suggested Laatsch open the discussion on the Austin-Steben motion. He voiced support for the athletic department. He said a third-party review was not warranted.
"We already have an 18-year, retired, well-respected former athletic director (Welton) providing mentorship for the athletic department. He is reporting back to me on a regular basis and giving me reports about processes and procedures," Laatsch said. "The latest report was excellent process and procedures within the athletic department - many of which I would use if I wasn't retired."
Laatsch said a third-party review sends the message that the athletic department has committed some gross misconduct, "which is not the case."
Laatsch reiterated Miller's concerns about violating privacy laws. He said the department has room for improvement but said it can happen during the normal process of improvement and professional development.
Laatsch said accountability can be achieved during his evaluation on Nov. 18.
"I do not support in any capacity an independent review," Laatsch said.
Austin described a holistic review of the entire athletic department, not just one person or team. He also said third-party reviews aren't new to the district, once again calling attention to the Huckabee review of the entire district in 2018 and the 2004 Beekman review of the Athletic Department. Austin said he didn't want the report done by lawyers who might produce a report shielded by FOIA laws.
"It's going to be transparent," Austin said.
He said he hoped for an affordable process - but noted that since schools get all their funding from parents, they owe it to parents to spend a little money to find better ways to do things.
"This is what will make us better going forward and I'm frustrated that we want to drill this down to being after a single person, because that is not what this is about," Austin said.
Trustee Lauren Gold raised a few questions. She said she didn't understand why hiring an outside person who has expertise in the athletics field is not considered an independent review. Gold said she understood that football players are upset, but she noted there were concerns with the lacrosse program, she's heard about swastikas in the district and the bulling of LGBTQ kids.
"There are so many issues that have been quite actionable that well worth through the process on. I just do not entirely understand whether this rises to the level of an independent review," Gold said. "I didn't see anywhere in that list of questions whether or not there's an investigation of why one teammate would racially harass other teammates."
Steben said an independent review provides the district with a chance for accountability.
"If we get a report and we have continuous improvement items, as a board, let's follow up and make sure we're doing the things suggested as areas for improvement," Steben said.
Steben said the district is known for its athletics and it needs an athletic department that operates like the number one school for athletics.
Miller said by having a third-party review, the board isn't giving processes underway a chance to work.
She also said a third party process is a "no confidence" vote in the athletic director and superintendent.
"That is opening us up to a lot of negativity moving forward, in terms of who might want to associate with us," Miller said.
Miller said similar complaints happened in other sports programs, and that the process worked.
"I cannot believe that a union representative has not become involved in this. I think that this is grievable," Miller said. "This is going to create, and it already has, concern with our staff."
Trustee Susan Estep said if the board is going to be transparent and accountable, "We should be comfortable letting his happen."
Gerbe said he would be in favor of an independent review if the processes in place didn't work.
"We haven't even given ourselves a chance or to go through the entirety of the Improvement process," Gerbe said. "And so, for me, this is simply too soon for that."
McVey called the vote, which passed by a 4-3 vote. Austin, Steben, Estep and Gold voted yes. Miller, McVey and Gerbe voted no.
McVey on the Process
At McVey's suggestion, the board voted 7-0 to direct McVey to create an ad-hoc committee to research the parameters, such as legalities, privacy, cost, of the third-party review.
Closed Session
It's not clear what the board discussed in closed session, but there was no related action when the open session resumed.
More News from Saline
- Superintendent Laatsch Announces Retirement from Saline Area Schools Steve Laatsch is retiring as Superintendent of Saline Area Schools on July 1.
- BASKETBALL: Saline Girls Win 3rd Straight, On To SEC Schedule The Hornets start conference play Friday.
Replies
Independent review may be helpful, depending on what they are looking at/for and whether it is truly independent.
Saddened that parents continue to push the football issue. The bottom line is that Saline broke the rules, intentionally or not. There are consequences for that. Poor lesson for kids when parents want to excuse that and in fact vilify those who took appropriate action and reported it.
Given the parents (and certainly not saying it is all) who are fanning the flames of controversy and angst rather than teaching their kids a life lesson about rules and accountability, I would imagine being a coach in the Saline district may be quite difficult and frustrating.
"Saddened that parents continue to push the football issue. The bottom line is that Saline broke the rules, intentionally or not. There are consequences for that. Poor lesson for kids when parents want to excuse that and in fact vilify those who took appropriate action and reported it." Should there be any consequences for those who failed to do their job? Not once has the AD or Superintendent addressed anyone in the district publicly or admitted any wrongdoing. The only lesson that has been taught to these kids so far is to blame someone else. The good news is the student athletes stood up and did something about it.
Well, perhaps you mean the coach who may have know they moved out of the district? The parents who may not have notified the school that they moved/not followed procedures to be in school of choice program? The parents of the friends of the kids who may have known they moved? The Superintendent who did in fact do the right thing and report it once the violations was identified? That's step one. The independent review is a good second step - nice to have facts in hand when judging, don't you think?
You win as a team, you have consequences for breaking the rules as a team - can't just break the rules and behave as if it never happened - that's a large part of the lesson here.
By the way, where is the parental indignation for the ethnic and rationally motivated "attacks" that have occurred over time within the Saline school system? Absence of outrage and concern over that is another lesson (and, like this has been handled by some, it is not a good lesson).
Can someone help me understand that if Saline is a school of choice, and the student was going to Saline schools and moved out of district, why is that a problem? With school of choice, a student does not have to live in the district to go to the school.
Per MHSAA rules, a schools of choice student must sit out one full year of any sport they played at their previous school.
For example, if this student never lived in Saline, and he actually should have been designated in the fall of 2023 as a schools of choice student, he would have had to sit out the entire year for any sport he played at his previous stop, Huron High School. Those sports were Football, Basketball and Track.
If his family did move to Saline prior to August of 2023, it should be very easy to prove that. I expect that the independent review of the Athletic Department that the board just approved will address this. You know, since they're all about being transparent.
If he never was a Saline resident, then you're looking at a bigger can of worms.
"This fall the school district discovered that a player on the Saline High School varsity football team no longer lived in the district, which makes him ineligible to play for the team."
Where did the player live during the 2023-2024 school year? I see lots of talk from board members about transparency. They should start by being transparent about his residency last year. Did the family ever move to Saline? Prove it.
It would be unusual and frankly extremely improbable for a family to move into the Saline district one year and move right back out the next year. Especially when the move was made for the express purpose of sending your child to the Saline Schools; err Saline Football. Is it possible the family never actually lived in Saline at all? (Gasp).
It would be an even bigger black eye for the school to have to vacate all wins in three sports last year. You can bet that if the family never lived in Saline, the school, the BOE, and the football parents (who continue to embarrass themselves on this issue) will move heaven and earth to keep that information from ever seeing the light of day.
Also, can anyone really say with a straight face that this student is the first Saline athlete to ever run afoul of the MHSAA residency rule? Bridge for sale.
"Transparency"
It's my understanding he lived in Saline in 23-24 and his residency status changed sometime during the year.
If so then the multiple exceptions might have been applied, if the family and the School Administration had engaged in a conversation. Seems like a out of control administration is the root cause. I am glad to see Trustee Austin force this matter into the light of day, rather than the closed door cover up conduct that has been so common for too many years. Hopefully everyone will come to understand that rules and policies exist for a reason and those who don't follow them, Board Member, Supt., AD, parent or student should be subject to corrective action and the public deserves to understand what happened and what the accountability is. Lets hope the Board serves the public and not excuse the mistakes made in this case. We have had too many years of rationalization for this type of behavior, time for accountability at all levels.
Agree regarding transparency as well as accountability, wherever it may fall. Independent review is a good step - if it is in fact independent (we shall see).
No sure why you jump to out of control administration being the issue. If the parents never notified of the move, could see the coach perhaps knowing and not reporting it, hard to think others in the administration would have been aware.
When we had less than 50 out of district kids, The Supt met with the families and went through the athletic requirements at time of discovery. It was also covered at all sporting pre season meeting with all teams and the Supt kept a record of the meetings.
As the current Supt willfully violated the District SOC program and rather than a classroom balancing approach he added over 500 students through the School of Choice Program and the School Administration stopped meeting with new families and no one in School Administration addressed SOC eligibility for athletics.
This open violation of District Policy by the Supt costs the community of Saline over $250k in lost tax revenue every year and the Board ignored this conduct.
The current Board President tried to cover it up and only through the dogged determination of Trustee Austin was the policy changed to allow what the Supt had been doing for over 4 years. All that the policy did was cap the SOC at 10%.
The program does not have a orientation program, new student assimilation buddy system and little support for them. IF any of these things were actually in place the student and his parents and the coaches would have become aware and addressed this matter when the family was considering moving out of the district.
We have faced this situation for many years and the Supt., AD, Coach and Parent Association of the sport worked with the family to a positive outcome. None of that was done in this case. Thus the accountability starts with the Board President who has tried to cover up the conduct, the Supt. how openly violated the Policy, the Board who rationalized the behavior, the AD who did know know about the need for a communication of the in district/out of district requirements, the Coach who is new to the District but coming from Belleville he is well aware of the residency requirements for sports and the parent who did not disclose the change of residency.
Everyone turned a blind eye to the facts, something the district has done for many years. It is part of the Saline School Administration Culture and our current Supt. is a product of that culture. Accountability begins at the top and cascades down for all involved. Time for everyone to walk the talk.
For your consideration,
David Zimmer
2004 Long Range Planning Architect
Saline Area School Board of Education Policy Chairman 2011 - 2015
Parent of multi-sport Varsity Athlete for over 7 years
Mr. Zimmer, you make a libelous statement about Dr. McVey. I urge you to modify your comment.
Libel is only if the statement is not true, and it is. Public officials are not able to sue for libel, citizens are able to speak without retaliation from public officials. The Board has all the facts (and the documents) behind my statement which is why they modified the SOC policy AFTER I brought the facts to the Board. Trustee Austin confirmed them with every member of the 2019 BOE as well as then Supt. Graden. The Board
President got caught in a lie, tried to cover it up and so did Supt. Laatsch. The change in policy occurred after I called them out.
Just telling you what the Culture is within the Saline Administration and BOE. Seems like the parent in this matter just did what those in power in the District have done for years. Ignore those policies they don't like until they are caught. We should expect more from our local officials.