BELOIT—Several players from the Beloit Memorial girls basketball team along with parents and community members spoke out at the Beloit School Board meeting for the second time in-a-row in support of suspended head coach Dilonna Johnson on Tuesday night at the Kolak Education Center.
Johnson, hired in October of 2020, was put on administrative leave around February 8th. School District of Beloit Superintendent Dr. Willie E. Garrison II has yet to reply to an email sent by the Beloit Daily News on Feb. 10 and he was not present at the meeting as he was attending the Greater Beloit Chamber of Commerce Meeting and Dinner.
The Purple Knights’ head coach was put on leave with two regular season games remaining along with the postseason. Beloit fell in the opening round of regional play.
Senior Jocelyn Tibbetts, a varsity player, said she and her teammates were there to show the school board how they feel about the situation.
“We really feel as if coach DJ could have got (put on administrative leave) at the end of the season,” Tibbetts said. “We had two conference games left and then we had regionals and she got put on leave right after a great win against Wilmot. We’re here to just show that we’re never going to back down. We’re always going to speak up about this situation because nobody knows anything. No one will tell us anything. We would like information.”
The exact reasoning for the decision to put Johnson on leave has not been publicly stated by the district, only that it is until “further notice.”
A petition on Change.org started by Tibbetts demanding that Johnson be reinstated said, “New information is being said that the reason why my coach was fired was for cussing in the locker room earlier this season. We have never felt uncomfortable nor threatened by our coach with the words (she) has said to us. Actions, words or anything.”
An individual speaking at the board meeting alluded to an incident in which Johnson allegedly replied to an email regarding a previous incident was sent by Westosha Central’s athletic director (Jonathan Lindh) by mistake when she had intended to respond to someone else attached to the email. The contents of the alleged response were not stated.
An investigation was started by both Beloit and Westosha Central’s school district after an incident on Dec. 19 where after a confrontation with a referee as well as school officials from Westosha Central during a jayvee contest, Johnson sought and received permission from the Beloit District to leave. She said as the Beloit team exited the gym, a handful of Westosha Central cheerleaders, student athletes, parents and fans started making noises and gestures like they were gorillas.
Asha Johnson, an assistant coach with the Knights who has taken over as head coach in the interim, said that communication from the school district would be appreciated.
“Kids at this age think very concretely. That abstract gray area where it’s ‘I don’t know’ and ‘Maybes’ or ‘Not yets.’ It’s really confusing for them,” she said. “This takes a lot for them (to do). And the fact that they’re out here again is really powerful.”
Many students spoke of the impact Dilonna Johnson had on them off the court, telling stories of giving them rides home or helping improve their mental health.
“She taught me way more about basketball, about my mentals and about how to be a better person,” Tibbetts said. “She stuck with me and everybody else on the team for three years, hopefully my fourth. We’ve never had a coach stay with us (before). And that’s what coach DJ gave us, that comfort and family bond.”
Tibbetts went on to praise Johnson for helping improve the team academically.
“We had more than half of the team on the honor roll,” she said. “She pushes us. She’ll help us with whatever we need, and now it’s taken away from us.”
Eight emails were read at the meeting showing support for Johnson while 13 people had signed up to speak out in person.
Asha Johnson said it speaks volumes about the kids’ characters for them to be there.
“Many of them are the definition of resilience,” she said. “Although the road is tough in general in this day and age, especially for such an under-resourced community, these moments right here are going to be what challenges them to take that leap of faith in adulthood.”
Asha Johnson also stressed that while the regular season is over, Dilonna Johnson often helps the players with guidance on AAU basketball among other things.
“It’s just not the same,” she said. “The administrative letter says no contact with coaches, players, parents or anyone apart of the school community. Well, that’s about 80 percent of the town. Some of those connections that she’s worked hard to build and maintain, they’re kind of on pause. That’s hard for everyone.”
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