Shuffle of Jobs Conforms CSUN With Title IX

The chairman of the physical education department at Cal State Northridge said Tuesday that four vacant coaching positions at the school have been restructured.

Sam Winningham said the changes would balance the athletic department in accordance with Title IX, the law that prohibits sex discrimination in federally funded education programs.

The personnel shift will give Northridge one more full-time instructor/coach than it had this year, and two fewer part-time coaches.

A women’s basketball coach will fill the new full-time vacancy. Leslie Milke, a part-timer, coached the women’s basketball team for two years but resigned at the end of last season. Her successor has not yet been named.

Tony Davila, another part-timer who was women’s tennis coach last year, will become the director of tennis. He will fill a full-time position and be responsible for the men’s and women’s programs.

Craig Witcher was men’s coach last year but resigned last month to accept a similar position at Nevada Las Vegas.

Walt Ker, coach of the men’s and women’s volleyball teams, will remain at CSUN as a full-time instructor and women’s coach, but Northridge will fill the men’s head coach spot with a part-time hire.

Winningham said the school might also reduce the classroom hours given to part-time coaches to supplement their coaching income.

He also put to rest a report that the men’s track team would lose its full-time coaching spot and that the vacancy created by the firing of former coach Bill Webb would be filled by a part-time coach.

“We are proceeding in a search for a full-time track and cross-country coach for the men’s and women’s programs,” Winningham said.

Last month, Winningham sent a letter to applicants for the track coach position that read, in part: “Because of possible staff reductions, we may have to move this position to one of part-time only.”

The letter caused a stir among returning members of the track team, two of whom discussed the issue with Winningham last week.

“We were concerned that having a part-time coach might drastically effect the quality of the track program,” said Ray Roberts, a decathlete. “We were concerned with our future there as athletes. Having a full-time coach is an important aspect of having a successful program.”

Don Stametz, who coached the women’s track team last season, is said to be a top candidate to replace Webb.