College Sports and Abuse of Power issues of how athletic corruption begins and sustains

One of the most interesting abuse of power situations in University / College sports appears again associated with the Univ of Tenn. Here a top flight Student Judicial Affairs person was essentially Fired for what appears to be doing her job well. imho Jenny Wright is young lady, with excellent credentials, that appears to have come up against the Athletic Department's desperation to get back on top, after their serious fall from grace due to huge problems in the Athletics area.

A school football program that was once always in the top 10 is now way down the charts and if you are off that top 10 list the school doesn't make any money. They also appear to have been spending so much money in recent time, that a panic is now in effect due to their management's failings across the board.


Here is the recent news story update that speaks to the issues of what appears to be abuse of power for firing a worker for doing their job over issues connected with the Universities Athletics Program:

The News Story of Recent Edition

Excerpt:

KNOX COUNTY, Tenn. (WVLT) - Jenny Wright says officials at the University of Tennessee ruined her career.


Timothy Rogers brought the allegations to her attention, she experienced quote "an increasingly hostile and stressful work environment, discrimination, significant professional and personal turmoil."

Wright went on to say "she realized that the University of Tennessee is a culture not exempt from the weight of powerful individuals seeking to exploit and control situations for personal reasons."

The former employee also put up her web page to speak to this issue:

Former Judial Affairs Employee speaks

The key point of the issues appears to be she did her job too well, and the Athletics Dept. is accused of retaliation:

Excerpt

specifically, they alleged that I had retaliated against a student-athlete by initiating the disciplinary process to suspend him from the university.

As much as I love college football, it has gotten out of hand. Most of the big football schools are essentially profitable businesses revolving around their sports programs. It used to be a way for student athletes to get a free education, now it's a just way of business.

The paper trail goes on for this sordid case, as the person connected with, the accusations suddenly retires. Plus, there is an Email from Jenny Wright to Tim Rogers, and they each speak to a hostile work environment.

Let take a look and discover that matters are not as simple as the University would like to claim:

Tim Rogers News Details

The announcement of Rogers' pending retirement comes less than two weeks after Jenny Wright was fired as Tennessee's director of the office of student judicial affairs for refusing to cooperate with a school investigation into whether she had inappropriate relationships with student-athletes. Rogers had given Wright 24 out of 25 points in her 2011 performance review, the most recent one in her personnel file.

and there is more to the story:

A public records request also showed that Wright had sent Rogers an email on May 7 - the day after Rogers' email to Cheek - in which she asked to meet Rogers about the "false accusations" made against her. In the email, Wright also cites a "hostile work environment that has been created and the discrimination I am experiencing." Wright said in the email that she and Rogers had previously discussed the accusations during an April 11 conversation.

Wright's lawyer, Robert Kurtz, has said that his client "categorically denies" having inappropriate contact with any student.

"That email supports what we've said all along," Kurtz said. "She did feel there was a hostile environment at UT. Rather than fight that, she chose to leave."

Chancellor Jimmy Cheek isn't very well known for his ethics and honesty, after he allowed huge lies from Coach Bruce Pearl to color the Universities reputation in athletics and bringing in criminal athletes and corrupt coaches. imho

This appears one for huge scandal building that again involves the Univ of Tenn and Chancellor Cheeks, and hostile work methods used on Employees.

The problems at UT appear to be getting severe because their aggressive budges that allowed for football to stay in the profitable top 10, but with the moral decay and fall from athletic graces, the football team is at the bottom of the ratings barrel, which means football isn't profitable. The basketball team that was once hot is also falling from grace due to lacking academic standards and alcohol problems with players.

UT is engaged in huge building expansions, and it appears the chancellor and their Andy Holt Tower Family see the writing on the wall is they have to harass areas like Student Judicial Affairs people for doing their jobs as it pertains to student athletes.

So, this appears far worse a scandal than the Bruce Pearl dishonesty issues, because this one attacks academia itself. imho

As this scandal builds one of the persons in the accusations spoke out via the news:

UT's Kenny Hall Speaks

"You know I'd like to think of myself as an attractive guy, so she could have been giving me some kind of eye. If she was, I don't know. I wasn't thinking about her like that, with her being in the position she was," Hall said.

6 News asked Hall if he had a sexual relationship with Wright.

"No I did not," he replied. "I looked at her like she was an attractive woman. But that never crossed my mind."

So, as the tracks begin to fall into place, and the term witch hunt appears highly appropriate. These retaliations happen when academic folks don't play ball with the corrupt athletics dept. and a desperate UT system of Chancellors that want money at any cost, over ethics and honest employees.


Now that scandal builds as the highest UT office is again involved with corruption of academic life and careers.

More of the story involves the timing of Trae Golden's departure from UT due to academic problems, and how this connects with Jenny Wright. It appears she is the one that started this process to remove Golden from UT.

Trae Golden leaves UT

KNOXVILLE - Point guard Trae Golden is transferring from Tennessee's basketball program.

A 57-game starter over the past two seasons, Golden was the Volunteers' third-leading scorer (12.1 points per game) and finished third in the SEC in assists (3.9 per game).




A source inside the program told the Times Free Press on Tuesday afternoon that Golden's departure is academic-related.

So, this appears a correct choice for Jenny Wright to remove Trae Golden from UT, and the scandal worsens for allowing these retaliations using hostile work environment methods.

Then again we find the word hostile work environment applied to another UT athletic department person:

JennyII Hostile Work UT

A public records request showed that Stewart sent an email regarding Moshak's situation on Aug. 1 to Michael Fitzgerald, the lawyer representing the university in this lawsuit. Stewart wrote that Moshak's work environment had "become increasingly hostile" since the suit was filed and that Mason's "sudden termination only magnifies the situation." In the letter, Stewart said Moshak was considering early retirement "to protect her physical and emotional well-being."

Then we have the double talk from UT's Andy Holt tower's Mike Fitzgerald:

Fitzgerald sent a reply Tuesday in which he said the university was "unaware of any harassing or retaliatory behavior" toward Moshak. He said the university denied Stewart's three requests and noted that Moshak's most recent evaluation was positive. Fitzgerald wrote that "the university will continue to treat Ms. Moshak the same as if she had never complained."

While the record consistently is now showing that UT management likes a hostile working environment.

Then if we take an even closer look behind the wall of denials that UT's mismanagement presents via allowing huge levels of hostile work environment, we discover a system sustained upon lies, abusive management, and zero guidance or ethics from the very top levels of UT-----to include even the Governor of Tennessee's office ignoring complaints


Massive Hostile Environment Complaints

UT employees raise awareness of hostile work environment

Organizers of the forum say the goal was to make the community aware of the abuse some employees say they face while working at UT. They hope the message will make it to the managers and eventually improve their work environments.

Then we have the excellent example that UT has been telling lies extensively:

United Campus Workers President Tom Anderson says since last year the group has had around 60 employees raise similar concerns.

"Derogatory remarks have been made repeatedly to a number of different folks, and that's just not the kind of work environment that the UT reports to want to have," said Anderson.

Across the board from athletics to over low pay areas, UT has turned into a hostile environment if they speak out on anything and other anyone in the management.

Such is an established pattern of dishonesty by UT.