Chad Beeten unexpectedly resigned his position in February as head basketball coach at Durango High School in Las Vegas, Nevada. He said that he filed several complaints against an administrator that he alleged mistreated and abused Black players, according to a letter he wrote to Clark County School District officials and Superintendent Jesus Jara.
The Las Vegas Review-Journal obtained a copy of the letter and Beeten said one unnamed administrator referred to the students as “gutter rats.”
“His conduct was becoming increasingly aggressive, intimidating and posed a serious threat to the safety and well-being of the students,” Beeten wrote.
He spent four years as the head coach and it was reported that his team was mostly composed of Black students. His team had a 14-5 overall record and 8-0 in the Class 5A Southern League during the time of his resignation.
They were also the No. 1 ranked team in the Las Vegas Review Journal’s Southern Nevada rankings. The team went on to win the Class 5A state championship by beating the defending champion Liberty with interim coach Michael Lee.
He also cited in his letter how the conduct that was displayed by the unnamed administrator was a direct violation of the district’s anti-discrimination policy.
“Administrators refused to conduct any investigation into it or take any serious actions to remedy the situation,” he wrote in his letter. He said his direct supervisor constantly told him that he would continue to “coach” the administrator’s behavior.
Beeten also wrote in his letter that a student filed a written complaint against the administrator.
“He went on a verbal tirade against students who were present in the gym, which included yelling at them, (the) throwing of a book bag and a water bottle, and slamming the office door, narrowly avoiding hitting the complaining student,” Beeten wrote.
Beeten filed another written complaint after hearing about the incident between the student and the administrator. He said attempts to meet with other school administrators were rejected, his relationships were damaged with other administrators, and he suspected he would be fired after his constant complaints.
Players and parents told Beeten that the allegations and complaints he filed were being turned against him.
“This allegation was never brought to my attention by school administrators,” he wrote. “In fact, to this day I am unaware of any details pertaining to any complaint made against me. In any case, I adamantly deny that I have ever mistreated anyone during my time at Durango, and would never harass, intimidate or bully anyone.”
On Feb. 1, Beeten was suspended without explanation by administrators and that prompted him to resign, according to his letter.
He emailed the school’s investigators on Feb. 3 and requested to be interviewed, but his request was denied he said.
Last month, a video was posted on social media that showed a school grabbing a Black student who was recording another Black student being arrested.
The incident prompted protests by the Black parents in the community. The district’s superintendent issued a statement last month saying he directed the school police to review its use-of-force policy.
It was reported that the school district emailed a statement on Tuesday to the Las Vegas Review-Journal that said it couldn’t comment on individual personnel matters.
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