Just this last incident with Palmetto High blew off the air after mother Ruth Daughenbaugh put it all on Facebook. She talked about Coach Jill Ford from the varsity girls’ basketball team and said how the coach has been talking really roughly with the players in the last three years. She said the coach curses at them, puts them down, and makes them feel small in front of everybody.
Ruth said both her girls passed through it, but not only them. Many girls on the team felt the same and didn’t speak up because they were frightened. Honestly, I understand that part because even back in my day, most kids went mute if they thought the teacher or coach was going to bench them or make things worse for them. I saw that happen in my own school team, so this sounded really familiar to me.
Ruth explained something that happened after a game on Monday. There was an incident between her daughter and the coach that led Coach Ford to blow up. In the locker room, she started cursing at her directly. Another girl ran outside and told her mom what was going on, so Ruth went inside the locker room herself.
She said the coach first acted as if nothing ever happened and told her she had never used any bad words. After a while, she admitted the truth, stating that she did lose it on the girl and talked to her badly.
Ruth said that the girls always kept quiet because they were scared of being punished. She feels that the coach takes advantage of her position to bring the kids down mentally and emotionally. She said she would not let anyone talk to her daughters that way anymore.
What ended up making her much angrier is that, as if nothing ever happened, the coach continues coaching. No one in the school appears to be interested in doing something about it. This is especially hard on her eldest because she is a senior. This is the time of year when the girls get more visibility before college scouts. She is also missing her senior night, which is supposed to be a big memory for every last year student and their family.
Ruth said something that really struck me on the head and is parallel to what I have seen happen in my school. That, if a parent for a second had talked to the coach’s kid that way, that parent would be kicked out of school in no time flat. And honestly, she is right. Schools are super strict about parents, but staff are always protected.
She said the more she thinks about it, the angrier she becomes toward her daughters.
After posting this, many parents and ex-players backed her.
“Katrina Perkins-the, the mom of one such child, Daughters, who also had similar experiences with the volleyball coach, Gracie Williams, at the same school, said,” the whole team complained, but nothing changed.”
Another parent said: This is the exact reason she does not send her kids to any school in Anderson District One because she believes the district protects the staff no matter what.
More parents commented that cursing at a kid is never okay. A couple of days ago, a mom named Kelly Ann wrote that that’s why she pulled her daughter out of club soccer.
Savannah Lee Burrell couldn’t believe that the coach had been reported before and still allowed to coach. Charlene Rondeau stated that the coach should not even be near kids. Jimmy Andrews just kept repeating that if students cannot curse, then teachers should not be allowed to curse either.
But, of course, the coach had her defenders. They said that cursing is normal in sports and that it builds mental toughness. Devon Kelly declared that, as all his coaches cursed at him, he believes that players should toughen up. Tez Greenlee also said kids are being raised too soft.
Another guy, Edward Williams, checked the team record and said the team has been bad for years, and college coaches are going to be tougher anyway.
In the end, Rachel Linda Daughenbaugh mentioned that cursing was not the main issue, for coaches and players sometimes have intense conversations. It is respect that lacks here, and Coach Ford does not respect these girls at all. You may also be interested in: Goliad High School Varsity Cheerleader Case Gets Community Talking After Student Says She Was Hurt Between Cars
