Washington – A former women’s basketball head coach at Montana State University is receiving new funding from the American Association of University Women’s Legal Advocacy Fund to help battle an ongoing problem of sex discrimination and inequality at the school.
Robin Potera-Haskins sued Montana State University-Bozeman on July 1, 2005 for sex discrimination and for retaliation for complaining about sex discrimination.
Throughout her employment, Potera-Haskins was given fewer privileges than the male coaches in the athletic department. She was paid 30 percent less than the male coaches and was not given benefits that male coaches routinely received, such as use of vehicles and cellular phones. She also contends she was given less autonomy over her team and was forced to use substandard practice facilities.
Potera-Haskins claims university officials told her that “winning is not a high priority for the women’s…team” and that she should “lower expectations.”
“AAUW is proud to support Robin in her case against an institution that puts men and women on unequal playing fields,” said Lisa Maatz, interim director of the AAUW Legal Advocacy Fund. “Sex discrimination is alive and well on college campuses, and we need to hold universities accountable.”
The school’s athletic director pressured Potera-Haskins to place his daughter on the basketball team and provide her with an athletic scholarship, even though she lacked the skills and qualifications to play at the Division I level. When Potera-Haskins filed a complaint with the university, no action was taken. She was eventually terminated without cause and replaced by a less-qualified male coach.
Potera-Haskins and AAUW assert that the school violated Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Montana Human Rights Act, and Title IX of the Educational Amendments of 1972. AAUW has contributed $5,000 to the case so far.
Potera-Haskins was hired as the head coach of the women’s basketball program at Montana State University in April 2001. She created a winning program, leading the team to back-to-back conference championships and assisting the players in maintaining an average GPA of 3.0 or higher.
“Robin was a winning coach with a winning program, and her efforts – and that of her players – deserved more respect from MSU,” Maatz said. “AAUW believes pay equity is a simple matter of justice.”
Read more about Potera-Haskins v. Gamble, Montana State University, et al.
To schedule an interview with AAUW Legal Advocacy Fund Interim Director Lisa Maatz, please contact Rebecca Leaf, senior media relations associate, at 202/785-7738, leafr@aauw.org or Ashley Carr, director of communications, at 202/785-7745, carra@aauw.org.
