Attorneys representing Penn State and former Penn State women's basketball player Jen Harris will meet via teleconference tomorrow afternoon to discuss possible legal action regarding Harris' release from the program, according to Harris' attorney Karen Doering.
Doering said she hopes the initial meeting will eventually result in a face-to-face encounter between the two sides. The proceedings should start around noon, continuing a process that began after the National Center for Lesbian Rights (NCLR) sent a letter to Penn State President Graham Spanier threatening a lawsuit against the university if action isn't taken against Penn State women's basketball coach Rene Portland.
Some Penn State students also plan to take action tomorrow. A rally, organized by the Student Stonewall Coalition, will be held at noon on the ground floor of the HUB-Robeson Center to show support for Harris and "demand Rene Portland's dismissal from Penn State," according to a press release.
Tomorrow's meeting between the attorneys comes in the wake of a back-and-forth series of press releases from Portland and the NCLR on Friday.
Penn State spokesman Bill Mahon was contacted about the proceedings and insisted that the university has reached only the point at which attorneys will meet. No one, including Mahon, has extensively reviewed the case at this point in time.
"I haven't followed the case very closely," Mahon said. "We are going to have our attorneys meet, and that's as far as it has come."
Portland responded to Harris' allegations of an anti-lesbian bias by denying that Harris was forced to leave the program because of her perceived sexual orientation.
According to the press release, the reasons Portland said Harris was released from the team include poor academic standing and claims that Harris engaged in "disrespectful, profane and belligerent behavior toward coaches and teammates."
"Simply put, she did not meet the level of commitment I expect all players to have to this great program, which includes performance during games, performance during practices, physical conditioning and performance in the classroom," Portland said in the release.
Portland said that Harris' previous claims of bias were "utterly untrue" and that she abides by Penn State's 1991 amendment to the university's nondiscrimination policy, which includes sexual orientation.
"It is unfortunate that she has chosen to attack me for her lack of success at Penn State," Portland said. "However, her lack of success had everything to do with her lack of commitment to basketball."
The NCLR released a statement the same day responding to Portland's remarks. When contacted yesterday, Doering responded on behalf of Harris by characterizing Portland's statements as "clearly false." She also said Portland issued the statement as a ploy to take the focus off of her own alleged illegal actions.
"I think it's absolutely outrageous that Coach Portland would publicly disparage a former student athlete in this manner," Doering said. "Jen's academic and athletic records speak for themselves."
There is a fear among Harris' representation that a personal back and forth between a coach and former player might ensue. Doering said Penn State has assured her that the process would not come to that -- Harris' word versus Portland's -- where the coach would have the advantage.
"We're not playing on a level playing field here," Doering said.
Harris started 22 games last season while averaging 10.7 points per game, which ranked third on the team. Doering said Harris had about a 3.1 cumulative grade point average at the end of the fall 2004 semester. She said Harris' GPA fell to around 2.9 in spring 2005, but Doering attributed that to emotional stress from the situation with Portland. NCAA and Big Ten guidelines permit a minimum 2.0 GPA for athletic eligibility.
Doering said her concern lies with which authorities helped to produce Portland's statement. She said she felt that if it was a singular act by Portland, Penn State should investigate the claims. She added that each of Portland's allegations has little proof. Doering re-emphasized that everything Harris has said to this point has substantial evidence.
"The university said it would investigate, and if they helped this come out without an investigation, that would be completely inappropriate," Doering said.
As the legal process unfolds, Harris, now a member of the James Madison University women's basketball team, has said she has felt an emotional toll because of the events up to now.
"She's very hurt. It's very upsetting, but she expected this and knew it was going to be difficult," Doering said.
