Rene Portland
| Rene Portland | |
|---|---|
 Portland speaking at a Pep Rally. |
|
| Sport(s) | NCAA Woman's Basketball |
| Current position | |
| Record | 606–236 |
| Playing career | |
| 1972–1975 | Immaculata College |
| Coaching career (HC unless noted) | |
| 1976–1978 1978–1980 1980–2007 |
Saint Joseph's University University of Colorado Pennsylvania State University |
Maureen Theresa "Rene" Muth Portland is an American former head women's college basketball coach known for her 27-year tenure with the Penn State Lady Lions basketball team. Her career resume includes 21 NCAA tournament appearances including a Final Four appearance in 2000, five Big Ten Conference championships and two conference tournament titles. Portland is one of nine women's basketball coaches to have won 600 or more games at a single school, with a career record of 606–236 at Penn State. She is accused of discriminating against homosexual players of the Penn State women's basketball team.
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[edit] Career
Portland first became head coach at Penn State in 1980, following brief positions at St. Joseph's and Colorado. Portland was previously one of the star players at Immaculata College, one of the early powers in women's college basketball.[1] Several of her teammates also went on to become prominent women's coaches, such as Theresa Grentz and Marianne Stanley.
Portland served 27 seasons as the Lady Lions head coach. She won over 600 games at Penn State, making her sixth in most wins in Division I women’s basketball. Although she had coached many Lady Lions teams to the NCAA tournament, she had been unable to win a national championship. Portland had a demonstrated commitment to charitable causes, most notably participating in the first annual “Think Pink” day to raise funds for breast cancer research.[2] On March 22, 2007, Penn State Intercollegiate Athletics announced Portland's resignation, effective immediately.[3][4] On April 23, 2007, the university announced Coquese Washington as her successor.[5]
[edit] Anti-homosexuality controversy
Portland forbade lesbian activity among athletes in her program, as she explained in a newspaper article:
One of the first things Penn State coach Rene Portland brings up during a recruiting visit with a prospective player and her parents is lesbian activity. "I will not have it in my program," Portland said. "I bring it up and the kids are so relieved and the parents are so relieved. But they would probably go without asking the question otherwise, which is really dumb."
— The Chicago Sun-Times, June 16, 1986[6]
The statement was made prior to adoption of Penn State's policy on nondiscrimination and harassment in 1991;[7] However, according to the 2009 documentary film Training Rules,[8] no action was taken against Portland's prohibition.
In 2006, former player Jennifer Harris accused Portland of removing her from the team because of her perceived sexual orientation. Harris filed a federal lawsuit against Portland, athletic director Tim Curley, and the university. An internal university review found that Portland created a "hostile, intimidating, and offensive environment" based on Harris's perceived sexual orientation. Portland was fined $10,000, required to attend diversity training sessions, and placed on "zero tolerance" for future violations of the nondiscrimination policy.[9] In responding to the sanctions, Portland stated that "the process that was used to reach these conclusions was flawed." Kate Kendell, executive director of the National Center for Lesbian Rights, has stated that "consequences faced by Rene Portland are insulting and inadequate."[10]
The lawsuit was settled, before Portland's resignation, under confidential terms and described by a joint statement as "amicable."[11]
Despite being forced out of the Penn State job, many of her fellow Big Ten coaches continued to support her. [12]
The documentary film Training Rules,[8] co-directed by Dee Mosbacher and Fawn Yacker, explores this issue further, interviewing numerous players about their experience with Portland and the anti-homosexual environment she perpetuated during her tenure.
[edit] Awards and honors
- 2004 WBCA Russell Athletic National Coach of the Year
- 2004 Big Ten Coach of the Year (Coaches and Media)
- 2003 Big Ten Coach of the Year (Coaches and Media)
- 2003 Naismith National Coach of the Year Finalist
- 2001 Inductee of the Pennsylvania Sports Hall of Fame
- 2002 Inductee of the Mount Nittany Society
- 2000 Women’s Basketball Journal Nat’l Coach of the Year
- 2000 IKON/WBCA District 6 Coach of the Year
- 2000 Big Ten Conference Coach of the Year
- 2000 Naismith National Coach of the Year Finalist
- 1997 USA Basketball's Developmental Coach of the Year
- 1995 Naismith National Coach of the Year Finalist
- 1994 Big Ten Conference Coach of the Year
- 1993 Newspaper Enterprise Association National Coach of the Year
- 1992 Converse/U.S. Basketball Writers Association National Coach of the Year
- 1991 WBCA National Coach of the Year
- 1989-90 Women's Basketball Coaches Association President
- 1983 Atlantic 10 Conference Coach of the Year
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- ^ "Biography of Rene Portland". Penn State Intercollegiate Athletics. http://www.gopsusports.com/BasketballW/people/coaches/coachProfile.cfm?sid=3. Retrieved 2007-03-22.[dead link]
- ^ GoPSUsports.com. "THINK PINK Day". GoPSUsports.com. http://www.gopsusports.com/ThinkPink/. Retrieved 2007-02-09.[dead link]
- ^ "Rene Portland Resigns As Penn State Women’s Basketball Coach". Penn State Intercollegiate Athletics. 2007-03-22. Archived from the original on 2007-03-28. http://web.archive.org/web/20070328170211/http://www.gopsusports.com/pressreleases/pressrelease.cfm?anncid=12159. Retrieved 2007-03-22.
- ^ The Pennsylvania State University (2007-03-22). "Director of Athletics Tim Curley Press Conference". GoPSUsports.com. Archived from the original on 2007-09-30. http://web.archive.org/web/20070930201643/http://www.gopsusports.com/pressreleases/pressrelease.cfm?anncid=12162. Retrieved 2007-04-25.
- ^ The Pennsylvania State University (2007-04-23). "Coquese Washington named Penn State women". Penn State Live. http://live.psu.edu/story/23820. Retrieved 2007-04-25.
- ^ Figel, Bill (1986-06-16). "Lesbians in world of athletics" (Subscription). The Chicago Sun-Times. Archived from the original on 2005-12-13. http://www.clubs.psu.edu/up/psupride/articles/Chicago%20Sun%20Times%2006161986.pdf. Retrieved 2007-02-09.
- ^ The Pennsylvania State University (1992-11-16). "Policy AD42 STATEMENT ON NONDISCRIMINATION AND HARASSMENT". Penn State Policy Manual. http://www.guru.psu.edu/policies/Ad42.html. Retrieved 2007-02-09.
- ^ a b Training Rules Official website
- ^ The Pennsylvania State University (2006-04-18). "University concludes investigation of claims against women's basketball coach". Penn State Live. The Pennsylvania State University. http://live.psu.edu/story/17387. Retrieved 2007-02-09.
- ^ Buzinski, Jim (2006-04-18). "Anti-Gay Coach Reprimanded". Outsports.com. http://www.outsports.com/women/20060418portlandreprimand.htm. Retrieved 2007-04-25.
- ^ Harris, Jennifer; Rene Portland, Timothy Curley, The Pennsylvania State University (2007-02-05). "Harris claim settled". Penn State Live. The Pennsylvania State University. http://live.psu.edu/story/22112. Retrieved 2007-02-09.
- ^ Harrop, JoAnne (2011-11-10). "Big Ten colleagues support Portland". Pittsburgh Trib-Review. http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/s_389437.html. Retrieved 2005-10-31.
