Coach charges P'edge fired him without justification
by Kelly Walter

Ralph Monterosso

Parents, students, and former Plainedge basketball players attended a Plainedge School Board meeting recently to show their support for varsity basketball coach Ralph Monterosso, who has been fired from his job recently.

Monterosso was charged with allegedly assaulting a custodian, being confrontational and flashing a wet handkerchief in the custodian's face. Monterosso, and his former players, claim these allegations are false, and came to voice their objections to the school board's decision to let him go.

"[He was] a fatherly figure without a doubt," said Paul Leite, who played under the guidance of Monterosso for 4 years. Leite spoke highly of the coach and was upset to hear of these problems.

Monterosso has had a close relationship with many of his players and kept in touch over the years, he said. At the board meeting, players who Monterosso had coached several years ago, who are now adults living in Plainedge, spoke up on his behalf.

"He was extremely helpful in becoming a young adult," said A.J. Garavuso, a Plainedge graduate and former player for Monterosso. Monterosso was his coach for 6 years and Garavuso said of that time, "It was a wonderful experience."

Many players, like Garavuso and Leite, turned to Monterosso for guidance they said. He would give the players pointers on college and life. Garavuso said that he was able to go back to the Coach for letters of recommendation even after he had graduated.

The Board of Education would not allow anyone to discuss the charges against Monterosso at the board meeting and they did not comment. The Board has a strict policy against discussing personnel issues in a public forum.

According to Monterosso, however, the incident in question occurred on September 11, during open gym for the boys. An outside agency was hired to do work in the gym and an employee there was using a cherry picker. The the custodian told the coach that the boys could not play in the gym.

Monterosso noticed that the employee was only working on one side of the gym and asked the custodian if the boys could play on the opposite side. He said he promised to keep the boys 40-feet away from the cherry picker.

Monterosso said the custodian agreed, and Monterosso said they shook hands in the middle of the gym. Monterosso said he warned the students to be careful and then continued with practice on the other side of the gym.

At the end of practice, the boys and the coach proceeded to leave and Monterosso mistakenly shut the lights off. He then heard the worker call for him, saying that he was still in the gym. Monterosso turned the lights back on and left. A few days later he was advised of the charges against him, he said.

Superintendent Christine P'Simer said she could not comment on personnel issues.

Many people, like Leite, felt the investigation was unfair, however. Some felt that the testimony of only one man should not be enough to fire a longtime coach and Leite said that interviews of the students who were present should be considered. Some students were interviewed but their testamony was discounted, said Monterosso.

"I feel like they're not doing a deep enough investigation," said Leite.

Monterosso charges that Jamie Labelle, the athletic director, used this incident to get him fired. Last year Labelle outlined a different set of offenses against Monterosso, but the union came to his side. Monterosso claims that the things they tried to fire him for last year "were not offenses" at all but just Labelle's attempt to get rid of him.

Efforts to reach Jamie Labelle were not successful. Several phone messages were left at his office to elicit his response, but were not returned.

"I have been there 20 years," said Monterosso. "I am 64, so you can see the motives. Get a younger guy in there; get this guy out."

Monterosso has sent a letter to the board, expressing his innocence and his willingness to take a lie detector test at his own expense. The worker who was in the gym was contacted by Monterosso's attorney, Mark DeLeeuw, and his statement supports his explanation of the incident said Monterosso. The worker, however, could not sign the statement because his employer works for Plainedge, so the schools would not accept it.

Monterosso is a Plainedge resident and has been coaching for the past 20 years. He has also taken volunteer coaching positions in the district.

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