School administration still quiet about beer at meal after state meet
By Natalie Root
Correspondent
CAMBRIDGE CITY — Wrestling coach Jerry Ingalls thinks a Western Wayne decision to prohibit him from presenting awards at Tuesday’s winter sports banquet punished the students more than it punished him.
“I don’t think they put too much thought into anybody else’s feelings, “Ingalls said Tuesday after learning of the decision from Athletic Director Garry Laymon.
The ban was in response to Ingalls’ admission that he drank beer at a table with parents after the state wrestling meet and submitted the expense to the school for reimbursement.
“I think those kids deserve better than that, “he said. “They’ve represented their school and their community in ways that have never been done before and here they are, their only coach that they’ve ever had doesn’t get to give them their rewards.”
Assistant coach Ryan Reagan presented the wrestling awards.
Gary Zuzolo, parent of wrestler Andrew Zuzolo, said “everybody is appalled with the decision “about the banquet, but he said the students and parents attended the banquet as Ingalls had wanted.
“Everybody showed up, and we were very civil, “Zuzolo said, adding it was evident the wrestlers were upset. He said Reagan’s comments were brief and the only mention of Ingalls was by the wrestlers at the end when they showed a plaque intended for him.
Ingalls said he was prohibited from attending the banquet and was asked to resign by Lincoln High School administrators because he drank a glass of beer at a table with adults at a restaurant after the state wrestling meet. The students sat at another table, he said.
Ingalls submitted his letter of resignation at Monday’s school board meeting but urged the board to reject it. The board took no action regarding his job status at the meeting.
Ingalls assumes his actions at the restaurant violated a policy on coach’s conduct, but he doesn’t recall being told specifically that it does.
Laymon declined to answer questions about who made the decision to bar Ingalls from the banquet; about whether Ingalls submitted his resignation Monday; and what part of the Western Wayne Coaches Code of Conduct he violated.
Laymon referred all questions to the Western Wayne administrative office. Calls to the Western Wayne superintendent and high school principal were not returned before press time. On Tuesday, board president Duane Rea said a special meeting to discuss Ingalls’ job status had not been scheduled.
Ingalls said he didn’t feel he was violating a code of conduct at the time a parent offered him a drink, and that it only came up after he and another parent paid for both tables at the restaurant and Ingalls turned in the bill to the school district with his meal and some other meals marked for reimbursement.
“I felt honored that this parent was offering me a beer in that situation. This (advancing to state finals) is something that hadn’t been done in 15 years at Cambridge and it’s only the third time ever at Cambridge, “he said, referring specifically to Daniel Moss’ advancement to the state finals in wrestling. He also has said he didn’t look at it as a school event because the students and parents came to him at his hotel room after the meet with an invitation to dine with them.
Zuzolo said he thinks the incident at the restaurant has been badly blown out of proportion.
“Jerry was not going to drive anybody home, “he said. “Jerry was going to spend the night. “He also emphasized the students were not drinking at the other table.
“Most of these kids are athletes and they wouldn’t even think about drinking beer. A lot of them belong to Students Against Drinking, “Zuzolo said.
Ingalls admits a reprimand might be in order for him, such as a short suspension or an agreement to not repeat the activity, but he doesn’t think termination is warranted.
“I dedicated a lot of my time to those kids and that program, and now the future of it doesn’t look real good, “he said, noting he had planned to begin the freestyle wrestling club next Monday. Ingalls said he has volunteered his time to coach this club for all ages because it “is the only time that elementary kids get a shot at wrestling because we’ve never hired an elementary wrestling coach. I do that for the future of the club.”
Ingalls has said he has requested an executive session with the board to discuss the matter, but he was told “they decide if they need to meet with me.”
Rea said Tuesday that school employees who disagree with administrative discipline can request an executive session, but that request doesn’t have to be granted. He said the teacher contract contains its own language regarding such matters that might not apply to other employees. Ingalls is not on staff in any other capacity in the district.
Rea declined to comment further about Ingalls’ request for an executive session, saying it is a personnel matter. No other board members have commented about the matter.
To comment on this story, contact assistant managing editor Brian Guth at (765) 973-4489 or [email protected].
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