Bozeman parents upset NXN coach not hired for track

By Doug Binder, DyeStat Editor

A group of cross country parents has filed a formal complaint against the activities director at Bozeman High School in Montana over hiring practices and transparency issues that have prevented national championship coach Casey Jermyn from securing a spot on the staff of the track team. 

Jermyn, who owns and operates the Bozeman Running Company store, took over the Hawks cross country program last summer when a panel of parents overrode the wishes of the activities director. The Bozeman boys went on to win the Nike Cross Nationals title Dec. 3 in Portland and the girls team placed eighth. 

In the days after the championship, Bozeman activities director Jerry Reisig chose Kelly Fulton, a teacher at the school and assistant cross country coach, to be the track assistant in charge of the distance runners. 

The move was made despite the objections of parents who want to see Jermyn continue to build the program year-round and believe that the team’s success should be reason enough to hire him permanently. 

“We disagree with the Administration’s decision to prevent Coach Casey Jermyn from having any opportunity to apply for, interview for, compete for, or be allowed any forum to express his interest in serving as the official Track ‘Assistant Coach, Distance’ for the spring,” the complaint, signed by 19 parents, reads. 

The Uniform Complaint Procedure Form sent by the parents to school officials lists 12 different points of contention and requests that Jermyn be hired and that his cross country position be "guaranteed" going forward.

This is not the first time parents have organized on Jermyn’s behalf. Former cross country coach Clint May was passed over for a job opening in the high school in June and left the state to take a small college job in West Virginia. 

“We went to meetings, wrote letters, attended school board meetings, district meetings,” Nancy Tanner, one of the parents, explained. “(Jermyn) was so obvious (as May’s replacement) and the kids wanted to run for him.”

Backed by the parents and student-athletes, Jermyn got the job. He left his store to coach the team in the afternoons after school during the fall. The Bozeman boys won the Montana Class AA title for the ninth straight year and the girls won for the 10th year in a row.

Bozeman swept the NXR Northwest regional titles and the boys pulled off an upset at nationals, knocking off No. 1 American Fork with a strong five-man pack. POST-RACE INTERVIEW WITH JERMYN

As student-athletes and parents grew concerned in December that Jermyn was not given an opportunity to stay on as the school’s distance trainer, seniors Piper Meuwissen and Riley Collins met Dec. 19 with Reisig, the activities director. 

“We asked him what the hiring process was,” Meuwissen said. “(Reisig) said that in our school the way things work teachers get first priority.”

Meuwissen said she requested further explanation as to why Jermyn wasn’t considered. 

“I thought he was dismissive and didn’t answer my questions,” she said. “He didn’t understand why people were upset.”

A message left for Reisig seeking comment was not returned.

Meuwissen said even though May elevated the cross country program, Jermyn took it to a higher level in 2016.

“Coach May was a great coach,” she said. “Casey stepped it up a notch. He trained us for the end of the season. We were doing aerobic base work through the middle of September.”

 Jermyn, who was named Montana Cross Country Coach of the Year, is technically still the cross country coach. He has expressed interest in securing a spot on the track staff, and was willing to do so without taking the district stipend. 

“I was hoping to get a position, but was never offered,” Jermyn said.