After losing $5.85 million this summer to former women̢۪s volleyball coach Lindy Vivas, Fresno State stands to lose even more respect and money thanks to the two high-profile gender discrimination cases scheduled to start in October and November.
Fresno State women̢۪s basketball fans recall head coach Stacy Johnson-Klein, both outspoken and fashionably dressed for her team̢۪s games. But what garnered more attention was her suspension, a three-week internal investigation performed by the university and her eventual termination from Fresno State in 2005.
In the end, the university accused her of repeatedly taking prescription painkillers from a player, mishandling money, not listening to “higher ups,â€Â committing an NCAA violation by allowing a player’s parent to stay in a university-paid hotel room and creating a hostile work and learning environment for her players and the staff.
Johnson-Klein is now suing her former employer for not only wrongful termination, but also sexual harassment and gender discrimination, which Vivas claimed in her winning suit as well.
Johnson-Klein̢۪s case will begin sometime in October. Following that in November will be the suit filed by former Associate Athletics Director Diane Milutinovich.
Milutinovich, who worked for 21 years as an athletic administrator at Fresno State and as the associate athletics director for the last 12 years of her tenure, was fired from her high ranking position in 2002 and reassigned just last year as the director of the University Student Union.
Fresno State claims she was taken out of the athletics department due to budgetary reasons.
Milutinovich disagrees saying she was removed from the athletics department because of her role in previous Title IX incidents involving Fresno State, including a 1992 suit that resulted in a two-year investigation by the Office of Civil Rights that found Fresno State out of compliance with Title IX in 11 areas.
According to Milutinovich̢۪s attorney, Dan Siegel, who also represented Vivas, the two cases are very similar.
Mike Foster • Sep 12, 2007 at 11:50 am
Yeah, it should be fun to watch Klein’s case flop.
Mike Foster • Sep 12, 2007 at 6:50 pm
Yeah, it should be fun to watch Klein’s case flop.
Carl Jeutestein • Sep 12, 2007 at 10:32 am
And don’t forget Stacey’s little pill popping incident.
Carl Jeutestein • Sep 12, 2007 at 5:32 pm
And don’t forget Stacey’s little pill popping incident.
john • Sep 12, 2007 at 8:02 am
Vivas & Milutinovich probably have valid cases, Stacey Johnson-Klein however is a different story. If you watched the news when she was fired most of her players were rather happy and didnt want her coming back. That kind of shows she was doing something wrong.
john • Sep 12, 2007 at 3:02 pm
Vivas & Milutinovich probably have valid cases, Stacey Johnson-Klein however is a different story. If you watched the news when she was fired most of her players were rather happy and didnt want her coming back. That kind of shows she was doing something wrong.