Good morning,
The third update on the dyer need for FUSD to take this seriously is regarding the direct impact to student athletes. Mariana Hernandez utilized the opportunity to join Echo Aquatics the summer before her freshman year at Fresno High School. Echo was established and lived up to being established for the current and incoming students of Fresno High School. During the summer of 2021 Mariana learned to swim and prepared for her first season of water polo that Fall. The season was filled with essential equipment not working, the girls watching the boys coach harass the female coaches, and then the open interference of the holistic program by an outside club.
That would be her last regular season with Coach Lopez as her primary coach. When the announcement that Coach Lopez would not be coming back was made, both Mariana and her mother were devastated. So much so that her mother wrote and called the FHS site multiple times, all ignored. The huge donation check from the other club hung in the main office, a reminder to students who would be taking priority of the pool and their program. Fed up with being ignored, Mariana gathered the courage to speak at the December 2021 board meeting regarding this situation. She was ignored. (The link and notes of what she said are at the bottom of this update).
Her sophomore year she decided to give water polo another try. She was let down on several fronts. The coach did not understand the game of water polo fully, there were not enough girls to play a game, and there were reminders of what happened. Reminders included Coach Annika telling a boy athlete that “mornings are for masters”, when he inquired if his team could have morning practice like they had in the past. She directly asked Coach Annika via text message and was ignored.
By the end of her sophomore year she was so fed up and she begged her mom to transfer out of Fresno High School. She has since left FHS to attend Sunnyside High School. She has completely given up aquatic sports. This is just one story of many that has stemmed from the trauma inflicted on the students, their parents, and community members.
Thank you,
Cresta
Board meeting notes and link -
December 8th, 2021
Video - go to 2:06
https://video.ibm.com/recorded/131204084
Mariana
Time stamp -
2:09:29 - Heart breaking and sad news
2:09:40 - She taught me how to swim
2:09:32 - 1st time I swam across the pool I turned my head…(she took a time out from her speech)
2:19:04 - I see Jenn above my head and said “See I will never make you do something I believe you can not do” and she said “you are strong kicker”
2:19:26 - Deck such a home for me and my teammates
2:19:43 - Mentions of morning practice
2:19:51 - Helped with homework
2:19:55 - Mentions fundraisers
2:20:05 - Jenn has every right to be there and doesn’t deserve to be treated this way
2:20:09 - She made the deck a welcome and safe place