Ex-Coach Files Complaint Against District 81 Litton Says North Central Discriminated Against Volleyball And Gymnastics Teams

Former North Central High School gymnastics coach Bob Litton filed a sex discrimination complaint this week against Spokane School District 81 to the U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights in Seattle.

Litton claims North Central has discriminated against the gymnastics team and coaches as well as the volleyball team and other female athletes.

Litton, 69, was fired March 15 after 13 years coaching gymnastics at NC, including 12 as the Indians’ head coach. He had been challenging administration on health, safety and equity issues the past three years. The firing caused a stir among NC gymnastics parents who jumped to Litton’s defense and openly questioned the administration’s decision.

Litton does not expect to get his job back. Amy Allen, owner of Spokane Junior Gymnastics Academy, is the Indians new coach.

“This whole situation is beyond me getting my job back,” Litton said. “It’s an attempt to at least approach equity.”

Randy Ryan, activities coordinator for District 81, said he is familiar with Litton’s complaint.

“Our procedure is that if the Office for Civil Rights contacts us we share information with them,” Ryan said. “Each school does a Title IX review each year and that’s the information we will be sharing with the OCR if they should call.”

Officials at NC declined to comment on Litton’s complaint. Activities coordinator Ed Fisher was out of the building Thursday.

NC has an even number of athletic opportunities for boys and girls with nine sports each, but Litton claims that the NC Associated Student Body budget allots 25 percent more money for boys sports than girls sports.

The monetary discrepancy, based on school budget figures, is due in large part because football has more costs and more athletes than the corresponding girls sport of volleyball. Comparable sports such as boys and girls soccer, basketball and cross country are funded equally.

Litton believes the school could expand opportunities for gymnastics and volleyball athletes. He recommends adding another full-time coach and a C team for both sports.

Another of Litton’s concerns is that the wrestling and gymnastics teams do not have comparable practice facilities.

This year, the school received a new wrestling room and weight room in the first phase of a two-phase, $3.3-million construction project.

The current gymnastics room, which used to be shared by the gymnastics and wrestling teams, is now called a multipurpose room and is used for physical education classes.

And there is a vision to eventually turn the multipurpose room into a world-class fitness center. That room includes exercise equipment that made for a dangerous practice environment for gymnastics, Litton said.

Litton said the gymnastics team will practice off campus this season at Spokane Junior Gymnastics Academy, 1008 N. Atlantic. Sending the gymnasts off campus is another of his Title IX concerns, he said.

A school is considered in compliance with Title IX if its athletic program meets at least one of three criteria set by the OCR. The criteria are:

Providing proportionate opportunities.

Expanding opportunities for women.

Meeting interests of female students.

Litton said he hopes to hear a response from the Office for Civil Rights within two weeks on whether the case will be reviewed or investigated.

He sent copies of his eight-page complaint to the school board, the office of the state superintendent of public instruction, the National Organization for Women and the American Civil Liberties Union.

His complaint to the OCR totaled 46 pages with documentation.

“I realize some of my complaints are nit-picky,” said Litton, who sent gymnasts to state every year in the 1990s except for ‘91. “But they are all situations that I have read about in court cases decided in other states.”