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Parents and students urge board to retain Coach Ajani after practice incident
Summary
Dozens of students, parents and alumni addressed the board in support of Coach Ajani, describing her as a mentor and urging the district to avoid mid‑season personnel changes; board pledged transparency and said a decision would be announced in the coming days.
A successive series of student and parent speakers used the public comment period to urge the Travis Unified School District Board to retain Coach Ajani and to provide clarity about next steps after a practice incident.
The nut graf: Public commenters — including seventh‑grader Naomi (who read a prepared letter), parent Owen Snell and other students and parents — emphasized the coach’s mentorship, safety practices and positive impact on athletes. Multiple parents read letters and asked the board not to change coaching assignments mid‑season, citing team continuity and student welfare.
Student Naomi read a letter asking the board to “please consider keeping coach Ajani,” saying the coach “has been a very important part of our team.” Owen Snell, speaking as a parent, said he had “personally witnessed the way she looks out for each player” and praised her attention to safety and team bonding. Other parents described injuries sustained on the courts and urged the board to treat the matter as an opportunity for staff training rather than immediate removal.
Board members thanked speakers for their turnout and said staff would provide additional information “within a couple days” and that the district would be “100% transparent” to the extent allowed by applicable rules. A board member clarified the board’s limits in responding during public comment and reminded speakers that the board cannot take action on items outside a noticed agenda item but can place items on a future agenda.
The board did not take an immediate personnel vote at the meeting. The public record at this meeting consists of the letters and on‑the‑record remarks from students and parents; trustees asked staff to provide an update to the community in the near term.
Ending: The district president told those who came to the meeting the board expected to issue an update shortly and asked for patience while staff completes a review.
