Northridge Panel Gains Extension in Probe : Investigation: Task force studying charges of racism within athletic program to report to Cleary in May.

Expected to present its findings Friday, a task force convened to investigate charges of racism within the Cal State Northridge intercollegiate athletic program instead had its deadline extended until May 4 at a meeting with university administrators and Black Student Union leaders.

The charges stem from a March 11 rally on campus in which the BSU demanded the resignation of Athletic Director Bob Hiegert and accused the program of racial insensitivity.

At the urging of the BSU, Northridge President James W. Cleary on March 23 formed the task force composed of students, faculty and a community representative. Of six task forces formed to deal with concerns of the BSU, it is the only one that is addressing athletics issues.

The BSU and a month-old umbrella group, the Black Student-Athlete Assn., also have given Cleary a list of demands that pertain to athletics.

If the demands are not met, BSU President Karen Brannon has said she will urge students to boycott athletic events, the cafeteria and the book store.

The rally originally was held to protest a proposed 40% tuition increase at Cal State universities. It since has turned the Northridge athletic program on its ear.

The BSU thus far has produced no evidence to substantiate the charges. Brannon, who brought the charges against Hiegert at the rally, insists she has proof.

“When a student-athlete says ‘X, Y, Z,’ it is just a rumor and the proof is going to come out of the investigation by the witnesses,” Brannon said. “There are people who have attested to these statements.”

Brannon reiterated Friday that she is basing her allegations on a rumor she heard that Hiegert told Northridge coaches not to recruit black athletes because there already were too many at the school.

Hiegert, who supervises approximately 350 athletes, one-third of them black, denies he made that statement and denies all charges of racism. He said he rarely knows who his coaches are recruiting, and several student-athletes said they never met Hiegert during the recruiting process.

“It’s a total fabrication. A total lie,” Hiegert said. “That bothers me personally, and professionally. . . . I don’t think that way.

“There is no hint of racism within our (athletic program).”

Since the rally, Hiegert has held meetings with his administrative and coaching staffs and called a special session of the Athletic Council in an effort to determine the nature of the complaints. The Athletic Council is composed of player representatives from each team.

“Two things are disappointing to us in the athletic area,” said Hiegert, who is in his 15th year as athletic director. “First, we’ve tried to work directly with the students through the Athletic Council. There is free-flowing information and any problems are addressed.

“After the rally two things surfaced, the BSU charges and allegations from another group of black athletes (BSAA). I don’t know who they are. The mystery to me is that if athletes are having a problem, why haven’t they come to us?

“And No. 2, if they went to faculty members, then why didn’t (the faculty members) come to us?”

Although Hiegert has not been presented with specific charges, he has been made aware of the demands of the BSU and the BSAA.

The BSU’s list affects several programs and departments on campus. Regarding athletics, it includes demands for a full-time black coach and a full-time black academic adviser. Under concerns, it listed academic advisement and the graduation rate, which was 10.7% for 56 athletes--of all races--who started school in 1984, according to statistics released last year by the Chronicle of Higher Education.

Last week, BSAA President Patrick Johnson, a member of the CSUN football team, presented Hiegert with more specific demands:

* A meal plan for each athlete, which calls for two meals a day, seven days a week.

* Subsidized housing for each athlete in campus dormitories.

* A qualified, full-time African-American football coach.

* A black academic athletic adviser.

Because of lack of funds, federal restrictions on financial aid and impending NCAA regulations, the athletic program cannot provide the first two items, Hiegert said.

There is a possibility, however, that certain cash allowances could be earmarked for a meal plan, but only athletes with enough athletic scholarship aid and/or financial aid would be eligible, according to Hiegert.

The third and fourth demands also cannot be met because no such positions exist, Hiegert said.

Moreover, affirmative-action guidelines prevent the naming of a specific race when posting an advertisement for a position.

In detailing the need for an African-American coach, BSAA leaders wrote:

“He would be a confidant, one whom the players could trust and relate to. He would serve as a mentor, someone whom the players could look up to, admire and emulate. An African-American coach would serve as a liaison between the black athletes and the coaching staff.”

Last season, approximately 45% of the players on the football team were blacks. Roughly 16% were Latino, Pacific Islander, Asian, and Lebanese. The rest were whites.

The coaching staff was composed of six whites and two Latinos.

In December, Cornell Ward, a black, was named graduate assistant for the upcoming season. And last week, another black, LeRoy Irvin, joined the staff as a full-time volunteer assistant.

Before the BSAA made its demand for a black football coach, Northridge football Coach Bob Burt was contacted by Irvin, a former Pro Bowl player with the Los Angeles Rams, about a coaching position.

Irvin’s appointment, Burt said, had nothing to do with his race.

“It was not by design,” Burt said. “If it was, I would have called him. “

Regardless, the end result--despite Irvin’s volunteer status--is that the black players have the black role model they demanded.

Andre Chevalier, a black CSUN basketball player who attended the March 11 tuition protest, understands why the players are more comfortable with a black on staff.

Although he said he is at ease with the CSUN basketball staff--despite the absence of a black coach--Chevalier believes a larger team, such as the CSUN football team with its large number of black players, needs a black assistant coach.

Football player Tyrone Dorsey, who also is black, disagrees.

“It really doesn’t matter what race you are as long as you are a good coach,” Dorsey said. “At the time, there were no African-Americans on staff, so (Irvin’s) hiring was fine with me, but he could be Hispanic, African-American or European-American as long as he can coach.”

In terms of academics, student-athletes can avail themselves of advisers in every discipline at Northridge. Coaches also are available as advisers.

Cedric Hackett, vice president of BSAA, stressed the need for an adviser specifically for athletics and said Thursday that his group no longer is demanding that the adviser be a black.

But Brannon insisted Friday that the BSU and BSAA desire a black academic adviser for athletics.