A roomful of parents and former athletes from the Stagg wrestling program came to the Consolidated High School District 230 meeting on Monday night asking the board not to accept the resignations of two popular wrestling coaches.
Dave Anderson, who has taught at Stagg High School in Palos Hills for more than 23 years, submitted his resignation on May 5. His assistant coach, Terry Mulrennan, who has been with Stagg for about three years announced on May 12 he was resigning.
Though Anderson and Mulrennan did not attend the meeting, the board heard from residents who said they believed the two coaches were being pushed out of their positions by a new athletic director who gave the wrestling coaches poor evaluations and treated them unprofessionally.
Residents gave the board Anderson’s career highlights and also talked about the quality of his character.
“Dave Anderson should step down when he feels it’s time to step down,” said Ron Kink, a former board member and parent of four Stagg graduates.
Former state champions and current wrestlers told of the way Anderson helped them. Ed Gutierrez, an 1984 graduate, said Anderson became a father figure for him when his dad died. “Dave Anderson taught me to be a man.”
One parent questioned why the administration at Stagg High School was not at the meeting.
While the board was not prepared to act on the acceptance of the resignations, the district is trying to work out a solution to the situation, said District Supt. Timothy Brown.
A meeting is scheduled for Wednesday between Ross Cucio, Stagg’s principal; Al Biancalana, the athletic director; and the two coaches.
Efforts to reach both Cucio and Biancalana were not successful.
