Susan Shapiro will not be coaching Gilroy High girls’ basketball
next season.
Two district investigations, which lasted seven months and cost
$25, 517, culminated in a decision by Gilroy Unified School
District to begin circulating an internal memo Wednesday stating
that the position is available to all certificated staff. Neither
Superintendent Debbie Flores nor Shapiro would say whether Shapiro
resigned or if she was dismissed.
GILROY – Susan Shapiro will not be coaching Gilroy High girls’ basketball next season.
Two district investigations, which lasted seven months and cost $25, 517, culminated in a decision by Gilroy Unified School District to begin circulating an internal memo Wednesday stating that the position is available to all certificated staff. Neither Superintendent Debbie Flores nor Shapiro would say whether Shapiro resigned or if she was dismissed.
In letters dated June 12, 2009, sent by Flores to Ed and Lisa Foster – parents of Gilroy High basketball player Lindsey Foster – and Ken and Tina Steele – parents of Gilroy High basketball player Laura Steele – the district found that Shapiro “more likely than not” told other district personnel that she intended to cut Lindsey Foster and Laura Steele from next year’s team. However, GUSD rejected both May 11 complaints of retaliation due to a lack of follow-through by Shapiro, who was originally investigated and exonerated by the district following a Feb. 6 complaint by the Fosters for religious discrimination and harassment toward their daughter.
Shapiro would not speak about the matter but did respond to an e-mail.
“Although I will continue to support the GHS Girls Basketball Program, it would be very difficult, if not impossible, for anyone to successfully coach this team, under these circumstances,” Shapiro wrote. “I firmly believe that my coaching talents and experience should be directed elsewhere.”
Shapiro gave no indication in her e-mail if she would file a lawsuit against the district, as she has previously stated she would do if dismissed.
Lisa Foster declined comment Thursday, directing all questions to her attorney, Heather Ledgerwood of Jon R. Parsons Law Firm. Ledgerwood said the family is still not satisfied with the district’s findings and plans to file a second appeal with the California Department of Education. The Fosters appealed the district’s conclusions following the first investigation.
“Basically, what we really want is to make sure there are safeguards and standards in place,” Ledgerwood said.
Ledgerwood said the family is still considering a lawsuit against the district depending on the outcomes of those appeals.
The district’s legal counsel, Garcia Calderon Ruiz, charged GUSD $22,191 dollars total for both investigations. Susan Rojcewicz, a counselor at San Benito High School, was paid $3,326 by the district to monitor the team at practices and games as an independent observer.
According to the Fosters, the conflict started in November when Shapiro sent an “inappropriate” text message to Lindsey Foster after being informed that the player would be missing a full preseason practice for a confirmation class. The original agreement between Shapiro, who is also Catholic, and Lindsey Foster was for Lindsey Foster to miss part of practice. Shapiro said she docked Lindsey Foster’s playing time because it was an unexcused absence. The Fosters, claiming the coach had a double standard for players, met twice with GHS Athletic Director Jack Daley to get the matter resolved, leading to Shapiro eventually changing practice times to accommodate Lindsey Foster’s schedule.
The situation deteriorated over the course of the season as Lindsey Foster’s playing time steadily diminished. Shapiro, who claims the dispute stems from Lindsey Foster not being selected as a team captain, said minutes were distributed solely due to performance in practice and in games rather than a vendetta against any player. A May 26 letter sent by Flores to the Fosters, detailing Lindsey Foster’s statistics compared to other players, appears to validate Shapiro’s point.
Laura Steele also saw her playing time drop significantly following a mid-season injury and disputes with coaches. She was not a starter when Gilroy finished its season with a Central Coast Section semifinal loss to San Benito.
According to the original investigation’s findings, Shapiro did show favoritism to certain players, which at times included Lindsey Foster. Additionally, Shapiro was found to have broken state and section rules against recruiting. In late March, GUSD self-reported the recruiting violation, which involved an e-mail to the parent of an eighth-grade student.
Despite Shapiro being out as coach, Ledgerwood said there are still plenty of issues to be resolved.
“We’re looking for the district to develop a plan on how to bring these girls back together,” Ledgerwood said.
“It seems like the district and the parents and the kids are going to need to get together and hash this out.”
The district has set a July 1 deadline for any certificated staff member interested in applying for the vacant coaching position, which will pay a $2,393 stipend for the season.
