by Bea Peterson
On Tuesday, a concerned parent of a HFCS cheerleader notified the Eastwick Press of an issue between the HFCS school administration and the Cheerleading Coach Katie DiMaggio. The parent, who asked that her name not be used, stated that “Recent action taken by Hoosick Falls Central School District administration members in seeking the resignation of the cheer coach has been called into question by many concerned parents and cheerleaders. [private]The manner in which the action was handled should be called into question…she was approached in the gym of another school district after a basketball game, with other adults and the cheerleaders present. This has become the “last straw,” by many (regarding) the District’s approach and lack of support for the program in general. Years of unequal fund distribution and administrative support will no longer be quietly ‘sucked up,’ in support of our children’s activities or concern that retribution from other students, teachers and administrators will be displayed to our children. The District has already adversely affected my child with its most recent decisions.”
“The Board of Education has been contacted and asked to place several items on the agenda for the next meeting. Current Board policy does not allow for a specific amount of time prior to the meeting date for such requests. It should be an interesting Board of Education meeting Thursday, January 24.”
This parent went on to say that cheerleaders returned by bus to the school after the basketball game and “the administration did not offer any type of immediate support. The members that were upset by the actions of the Athletic Director and Superintendent were left believing that the District did not care about their concerns. In fact, when the Coach told them after that basketball game that she was being forced to leave her position, no one from the administration was present to answer any of their questions, either at the school where the game was played or at HFCS when the bus arrived. The girls were upset and crying and no one from the school was there to give them answers or offer support.”
“At this point,” said the parent, “the District has replaced the cheer coach with no reason given to parents. They have not answered questions that several of the squad members asked about their individual placements on the squad; such as back spot, base or flyer. These positions are skill specific and earned with many years of work and practice.”
“When we finally met [with school officials] the following Wednesday, after not receiving any answers on how the administration then planned to help rebuild the squad, as about half the members had left. Their reasons for leaving included what they believed to be the unfair and unjust replacement of a coach many had known since youth football and cheerleading; concerns on how they would be treated by the squad members who had not expressed concern over the treatment of the coach; and their belief that the administration had no understanding of cheerleading and the lack of support displayed by the administration towards Cheerleading.”
According to another parent close to the situation, a change of coaches was planned for next season, but something has happened that no one from the school is talking about. “At the Lake George game HFCS Assistant Principal and Athletic Director Brett Lamy was seen talking to Coach Katie DiMaggio for some time after the game and all the way out of the gym. The next day she said she was going to resign. She ended up still coaching at Tamarac and told two JV members that she was leaving and it all went south from there…crying, cursing, etc. The squad is now half of what it was…many girls quit because Katie said the team was done.”
At this point, the Coach is not available for comment and HFCS Superintendent Ken Facin said, “We do not comment on personnel issues as per NYS ED regulations and privacy laws.”
Go to the post in the HFCS pages to read about the new coach and how the cheer squad has bounced back.[/private]