A Missouri school is under investigation for alleged discrimination against Black students. This opinion piece calls for action to protect these students.
The U.S. Department of Education is investigating whether a Black Warrensburg student-athlete’s civil rights were violated. Facebook/Warrensburg Tigers Men’s Basketball Steve is the parent of a former student-athlete at Warrensburg High School in Johnson County, Missouri. Because of allegations of racial discrimination and retaliation Steve made against Warrensburg varsity boys basketball coach Chris Nimmo and assistant coach Matt Thomas, the Warrensburg school district is under scrutiny by the U.S. Department of Education Office for Civil Rights. Because Steve doesn’t want to see retaliation against his teen son, I will only use his first name in this column. And Steve may have a good reason to want to remain low-key.
In November, the OCR opened a civil rights investigation to determine if the district created a hostile environment for the two Black players on the team’s roster during the 2022–2023 school year, according to a copy of the complaint I read. School district and federal education officials I spoke with confirmed the probe but declined to comment.
Federal officials also want to know if coaches limited Black players’ time on the court based on race, according to the complaint. The OCR will also investigate Steve’s claims that his son was retaliated against after Steve reported to school officials the use of racial slurs and jokes made by another player on the team. It’s important to remember Steve’s claims that he witnessed Black players being mistreated are merely accusations. I won’t convict Nimmo, Thomas or Warrensburg school district officials here. An important development we cannot ignore:
The OCR moved forward with Steve’s claims that Black kids on the team were discriminated against for a reason. Federal authorities will ultimately conclude whether Nimmo or Thomas did anything wrong. INFLUENTIAL FIGURE IN MISSOURI SCHOOL SPORTS Nimmo is listed as a physical education teacher at Warrensburg Middle School on the district’s online staff database. He’s been a coach and educator for three decades, according to bio information I could find. Since 2005, he’s been Warrensburg’s head coach, according to his Linkedin profile.
As past president of the Missouri Basketball Coaches Association and past president of the National High School Basketball Coaches Association, Nimmo yields considerable power and influence at the high school basketball level. If allegations that he or his assistant coach discriminated against Black players and retaliated against a former player are proven true, Nimmo’s role in those important positions must be reconsidered. I reached out to Nimmo for comment but email messages were not returned. Attempts to reach Thomas for comment were unsuccessful. I chatted briefly with Warrensburg Superintendent Steve Ritter.
In July, Ritter replaced Andy Kohl, who retired. Because of privacy laws, Ritter declined to comment on the inquiry but emailed a statement. He wrote: “As you are aware, the Warrensburg School District cannot comment on specific personnel or student matters due to laws and policies governing confidentiality including during an investigation by the Office of Civil Rights. The district has policies and procedures in place to address allegations of discrimination. When a student or parent brings a concern of this type to our attention, the district conducts a thorough investigation and, when the allegations are substantiated, takes appropriate action to address the situation.
“Of course, not all allegations are substantiated after an investigation. Regardless of the findings, the parties to an investigation have the option to appeal the findings through our Board policies. When a complaint is filed with the Office for Civil Rights, we cooperate fully with that investigation. We are proud of the work we do each day to ensure that we are cultivating an environment that is free from discrimination, and that it is a positive place for all our community members to learn and work.” Steve filed the complaint with the OCR’s office in Kansas City last February. He didn’t want to go public and stir up things in the rural town about 60 miles east of Kansas City. Small-town politics work that way, I suppose. TARGET OF RACIST LANGUAGE, RETALIATION?
Last year, Steve’s son told him that a teammate regularly used racist language without much consequence. When Steve’s child first complained to Nimmo about the student’s indiscretion, the offending student sat out just one game, according to Steve. One day after the player’s remarks were reported to Nimmo, the player reportedly used the n-word again, Steve claims. Steve told me more should have been done to curtail the student’s racist behavior. Nimmo never addressed the issue with the entire team, Steve alleges. Had Nimmo done so, the racist taunts could have possibly ended and maybe brought the team closer together, he said.
“They never addressed what he said with the team directly at all,” Steve told me this week. Steve took his concerns to Kohl, the superintendent. Days later, when Steve’s last appeal to district leadership was denied, coaches retaliated against Steve’s son by not letting him on the team bus, Steve claims. “Because the district receives federal financial assistance from the Department of Education, the district is subject to Title VI and OCR’s jurisdiction,” U.S. supervisory attorney Benjamin Carr wrote in a letter to Steve acknowledging the probe. I reached out to OCR officials in Kansas City for comment. But the federal agency does not discuss the details of its cases, according to Jim Bradshaw of the Department of Education’s press office in Washington, D.C. “Opening the complaint for investigation in no way implies that OCR has made a determination on the merits of the complaint,” Carr wrote to Steve. Carr’s letter continued:
“The district may not harass, coerce, intimidate, discriminate, or otherwise retaliate against an individual because that individual asserts a right or privilege under a law enforced by OCR or files a complaint, testifies, assists, or participates in a proceeding under a law enforced by OCR. Complaints alleging such retaliation may be filed with OCR.” ECHOES OF TEXAS TECH, HIGHLAND, EDEN PRAIRIE Alleged mistreatment of Black basketball players by white coaches is way too common. We’ve seen it at the high school and college levels. Last March, former Texas Tech head coach Mark Adams, who is white, resigned after making racially insensitive comments to a Black student-athlete. Adams used a Bible scripture to encourage the player to be more receptive to coaching, according to Texas Tech officials.
His reference about workers, teachers, parents, and slaves serving their masters was way over the top. At Highland Community College in Highland, Kansas, former athletic director Bryan Dorrel and outgoing president Deborah Fox were accused of forcing football and basketball coaches to recruit more non-Black athletes. Four former Highland student athletes settled discrimination lawsuits against the school. In Minnesota, David Flom, a former Eden Prairie High School varsity boys basketball coach, stepped down last year after using a racial slur during a team meeting.
Flom had coached at that school for 17 years before leaving. Such behavior by coaches or administrators in positions of power should never be tolerated. In Warrensburg, if any of these allegations against Nimmo or varsity assistant Thomas are found to be true, federal officials must send a strong message that racial discrimination and retaliation will not be tolerated in the Warrensburg School District.
This story was originally published January 23, 2024, 5:06 AM. RELATED STORIES FROM KANSAS CITY STAR TORIANO PORTER
Toriano Porter is an opinion writer and member of The Star’s editorial board. He’s received statewide, regional and national recognition for reporting since joining McClatchy in 2012.
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