Eller to get repaid for suspension

Superintendent Jim Scales said he will overturn the suspension of former Hixson High basketball coach Bill Eller and repay him for the 10 days the coach was not at work.

The decision came after a lengthy hearing and a 5-3 vote Monday night by the Hamilton County Board of Education allowing Dr. Scales to reclassify Mr. Eller’s 10-day absence from an unpaid suspension to administrative leave with pay.

“He got the suspension reversed and everybody had a chance to say what they said,” said Mr. Eller’s attorney, Frank Pinchak.

A packed board room filled mostly with Mr. Eller supporters listened to nearly five hours of testimony from students and administrators, as well as attorney statements.

Mr. Eller was accused of making racist comments to students at Hixson, but Mr. Pinchak called the situation “a witch hunt by a couple of students.” Mr. Pinchak claimed the students who accused his client were frequently in trouble with school authorities, including Mr. Eller.

The student to whom the alleged racist comments were made had “motive to fabricate the story,” Mr. Pinchak said.

Mr. Eller now will be reimbursed about $2,000, according to Scott Bennett, the school board’s attorney. The former coach, who currently is a physical education teacher at Soddy-Daisy High School, also will be required to attend diversity and cultural sensitivity training, Mr. Bennett said.

“It’s a win-win situation, really,” said board member Debra Matthews, who called for an early end to the meeting and voted twice against the motion. “I just wish we had done it earlier.”

At the start of Monday’s called meeting, board member Chester Bankston presented the motion that eventually would pass five hours later. Before the hearing, however, the motion failed by one vote.

Mr. Eller was suspended without pay Jan. 4, for alleged unprofessional conduct toward students. Dr. Scales called the reported conduct “intimidating” and “harassing.” Mr. Eller was transferred to Soddy-Daisy on Jan. 18, and stripped of his coaching duties.

The testimony Monday mostly surrounded an incident that took place near the end of a physical education class at Hixson on Dec. 5, 2007. According to testimony from two students, who are not identified here in accordance with Chattanooga Times Free Press policy, Mr. Eller was labeled a racist by a black female student after he asked her to close the gym door until class was over, and to stop taking down posters of classroom rules that were taped on the windows.

Both students said at one point that Mr. Eller told their classmate, “White does right, black does wrong,” and insinuated that he might be a member of the Ku Klux Klan.

“I was shocked because I didn’t expect him to say something like that,” said one of the witnesses, a black female. When asked if she thought Mr. Eller was joking, she said he might have been, but that she didn’t find it funny.

After more testimony from current administrators, and former Hixson Principal Eddie Gravitte, who discussed prior acts of insubordination by Mr. Eller, the former coach took the stand in his own defense.

Mr. Eller said the issue of race was raised by the student who began tearing down his posted rules. After he told her to stop, she said “I bet if I was white you wouldn’t say that to me,” he said.

“I said that she was insinuating that white would be doing right and black would be doing wrong, and color has nothing to do with it,” said Mr. Eller.

Mr. Eller denied ever making comments about belonging to the KKK, calling the statements “false and untrue.”

The educator was Mr. Pinchak’s only witness because board member Everett Fairchild made a motion to give Dr. Scales the authority to reclassify the suspension. Mr. Fairchild voted against the motion the first time it was offered.

The hearing Monday was only to decide whether to overturn Mr. Eller’s suspension and did not address a pending grievance filed on his behalf by the Hamilton County Education Association. The teachers union claims several sections of the teacher contract were violated. The union is asking that Mr. Eller be transferred back to Hixson and be reinstated as a coach.

Dr. Scales, who has jurisdiction over teacher transfers and coaching assignments, said there were further incidents involving Mr. Eller’s unprofessional conduct that were not addressed Monday night. Those incidents warranted the removal of his coaching duties and transfer to Soddy-Daisy, the superintendent said.