BRIDGER — A dispute over alleged misconduct by a high school basketball coach has escalated into a broader controversy within the Bridger school district, resulting in a suspension, the resignation of the head coach, and prompting questions from community members.
Watch the story here:
The conflict centers on assistant boys basketball coach Jake Kallevig, who was accused by parents and students of using profane language toward players during a practice.
Superintendent and Bridger High School principal Nick Gallagher brought a recommendation to terminate Kallevig during a school board meeting last week, citing concerns about player treatment and team culture.
During the meeting, Gallagher told the board the district had received multiple reports describing “a team environment that is emotionally unsafe and unsupportive.” He said those concerns were discussed with Head Coach Jerry Thompson on the afternoon of Dec. 8, before a scheduled practice.
According to Gallagher, during that evening’s practice, Kallevig told student-athletes to “shut the (profanity) up,” prompting the superintendent to meet with Kallevig the following morning and inform him that a letter of termination would be brought forward to the school board.
Kallevig did acknowledge using the language but disputes how the situation was handled. He said he was never warned about complaints, disciplined previously, or given an opportunity to respond before termination was proposed.
“Why wasn't I told about the complaints beforehand? I wasn't reprimanded. I wasn't asked my side of the story. There was no due process followed," said Kallevig during the board meeting. “I told the kid to 'shut the F up,' but that came after me asking him twice to stop talking so I can explain what to do, and it wasn't just one kid that I said that to. I said it to two kids.”
Kallevig said he felt the motion was done personally against him, as he stated similar language is commonly heard in athletic practices.
“I said one little thing that coaches say every day in practice, and I get fired on the spot. That’s wrong,” said Kallevig. "Nobody else has had that happen to them. This is personal.”
The motion to terminate Kallevig was ultimately voted down, as the board discussed an option to create a different motion for Kallevig to be placed on paid suspension until Gallagher could continue discussions with Kallevig and Thompson.
His coaching position was briefly posted online but later removed. Gallagher declined to comment on Kallevig’s current employment status.
The controversy has had wider fallout. Gallagher said Thompson resigned Saturday, stating during last week's meeting he disagreed with how the district handled the matter and believed proper procedures were not followed.
Thompson told the board he supported Kallevig and questioned the characterization of the incident, saying the assistant coach was not given fair process.
“If you're going to fire Jake, you guys have the right to do that, but you don't have the right to violate civil rights and you don't have the rights to not give them due process and to expect coaches to follow every little rule down to the MHSA rule that's in there, and then you guys break all of yours,” Thompson said. “They said that (Kallevig has) until Thursday to resign or you are going to be fired, so that leads me to believe that Nick made the decision to fire him."
Athletic director Lena Kallevig, Jake Kallevig’s mother, also stepped down from her role and from coaching, though Gallagher said she remains employed by the district as a paraprofessional.
On Friday, Gallagher defended the district’s actions, saying administrators consulted legal counsel and believed they were acting appropriately based on the information available at the time.
“At the meeting, there were some questions about process and was it followed? And I think we followed what our plan was up until that point,” Gallagher said in an interview. "There wasn't any doubts in my head in terms of were we not following a specific process or doing necessarily anything wrong.”
He acknowledged, however, that the situation has taken a toll on the community and knows there is work to be done.
"Things happen that really do impact the culture of a school or in a community, and that's tough," said Gallagher. "But we're all here to do a job, and that's to make sure that kids learn, so the sooner that we can kind of get back focused on that, the better.”
MTN did reach out to Thompson and Kallevig on Friday for additional comments. Thompson did not wish to comment and Kallevig did not respond.
