I would have liked to have made a quick reply to Ashley Yudin’s April 28 letter to the editor asking “Is the school board over the line?” but the record is going to take a while to clear up.

I have no skin in the volleyball world — none. However, I do think that letting the record stand as Yudin sees it would be an injustice.

He states that the school board members are all too willing to use their power to influence their child’s appearance on a sports team. I guess the same would be true of Spanish teachers and every other instructor in the district. As public officers, these representatives know that the dangers greatly outweigh the rewards of this kind of abuse.

School board members approve of the hiring of just about everyone who works for the Davis schools, including the variable services agreement contracts for coaches. And unlike club coaches, who can enjoy self-appointed authority, school board members are elected.

Insinuating that the outgoing DHS principal’s reasons for departure have anything to do with coach/parent conflict is hearsay. The importance of sport is not that pre-eminent, even at DHS.

However, Yudin finds this occasion to remind the school board of the dangers of hiring a new principal who might listen to parents as well as coaches. Who is Yudin hoping to protect? Last time I looked, DHS was a public institution dedicated to the education of its students, not the careers of its coaches.

I am sympathetic to the headaches zealous parents can bring to a coach. At the same time, it’s very difficult for parents to contemplate adjudicating their child’s legitimate complaint through the coach/athletic director/principal gauntlet for any reason. You’ve only got four years; do you really want to sacrifice your kid’s chance even if it’s the right thing to do?

I hope most coaches recognize the responsibility of this kind of power. For the ones who don’t, it’s entirely appropriate to expect the school board to keep the coaches in check and not the other way around.

Scott Ragsdale

Davis

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