By Jim Buzinski
Outsports.com

Penn State University ruled April 18 that women's basketball coach Rene Portland created a "hostile, intimidating and offensive environment" based on the perceived sexual orientation of a former player. Portland continues to insist she did nothing wrong.

Portland, (left), head coach of the Lady Nittany Lions for 26 seasons, will be required to pay a $10,000 fine, a written reprimand will be put in her personnel file, she will be required to participate in a professional development experience devoted to diversity, and has also been informed that further violations will result in termination with cause. The university based its decision on an internal investigation; a federal discrimination lawsuit against Portland and Penn State is still on track.

(On May 15, lawyers for both sides were unable to reach a settlement during a court-ordered mediation session. "It was not successful; we are disappointed with the outcome," women's basketball spokeswoman Erin Whiteside told AP. "This means that the case will continue to move forward." The trial is tentatively scheduled to start in May 2007.)

Portland read a statement April 18 in which she denied discriminating against Harris. "With respect to the administrative decision's conclusions relating to claims involving alleged sexual orientation, I believe the process that was used to reach these conclusions was flawed,"  she said. She also said she would be back as head coach next season.

The player in question, Jennifer Harris, was upset by Penn State's decision. Harris is now at James Madison University where she will be eligible to play her junior and senior seasons.  

"I am disappointed by this result," Harris said in statement. "Penn State did not take the allegations seriously and does not appear interested in solving the underlying problem."

Helen Carroll, who runs the homophobia in sports project for National Center for Lesbian Rights and is a former basketball coach, had a mixed reaction.

"It is a positive for the university to absolutely say Rene Portland did discriminate and create a hostile environment for Jennifer Harris," Carroll told Outsports. "The second part is how to remedy that. ... We're saying it can't be solved if Rene Portland says there is no problem and it's the university that's mistaken."

Carroll questions how effective diversity training can be for Portland when she insists she did nothing wrong, and called the remedies, including the size of the fine,  a slap on the wrist.

Last year, Harris, with the help of the National Center for Lesbian Rights, sued Portland and the university. The complaint says that "despite Harris’ outstanding performance as a player during her two-year career at Penn State from 2003 to 2005, Coach Portland repeatedly questioned Harris about her sexual orientation, repeatedly threatened to kick Harris off the team if she found out Harris was a lesbian, and eventually told other players not to associate with Harris because she believed that Harris was gay. In 2005, Coach Portland abruptly told Harris to find somewhere else to play." Portland contended Harris was kicked off the team based on her performance, and Harris says she is not a lesbian.

The NCLR, while glad that Harris' claims were vindicated by the school, was also disappointed by the remedy.

"The courage and bravery of Jennifer Harris finally has exposed Rene Portland’s reign of terror. I’ve spoken directly with a number of women who played for Coach Portland over the past three decades and who were traumatized by her anti-lesbian policy. They lived in fear of losing their scholarships, and, for most of these women, their scholarships were the only means to receive a college education," said Kate Kendell, Executive Director of the National Center for Lesbian Rights. "Given the damage done by Penn State and the personal sacrifice of Jennifer Harris, the consequences faced by Rene Portland are insulting and inadequate."

Lead attorney Karen Doering had a similar reaction. 

"We are pleased that Penn State has chosen to implement several of the policies Jen Harris suggested, including informing all incoming student athletes about Penn State’s non-discrimination policies and alternative methods of reporting such violations to officials outside of the athletic department.  However, we are deeply disappointed that Penn State has chosen such a minor rebuke to address such a systemic, quarter-century long problem," said Karen Doering, Senior Counsel for the National Center for Lesbian Rights. "We will still go forward with the court ordered mediation scheduled for mid-May, but we do not hold out much hope for a negotiated resolution at this stage given Penn State’s anemic response and Coach Portland’s continued denials and failure to acknowledge that her discriminatory and unlawful behavior needs to change."

Harris, who is black, later filed a lawsuit -- which is pending in federal court -- in which she also says that Portland, who is white, discriminated against her because of her race. AP said. The school said it found no evidence that Portland discriminated against Harris on the basis of race. Carroll said she is confident that evidence in the federal lawsuit "will show there is a racial component."

Portland is notorious for publicly stating in 1986 she would not have lesbians on her team ("I will not have it in my program," Portland told the Chicago Sun Times. "I bring it up and the kids are so relieved and the parents are so relieved."), yet Penn State has never disciplined her until today.

Carroll last year called the Portland case, “the hottest case to ever hit women's sports concerning the treatment of perceived lesbian athletes and could be the case to really change climate in college athletics.”

Related: How does Portland keep her job?

April 18, 2006