A Kentucky high school coach has learned the hard way that bad behavior away from the field of play can have very real consequences.
Bullitt (Ky.) Central High School teacher Jessie Curry was fired from his position as head boys' basketball coach and boys' golf coach after he drank in excess during a school fundraiser.
According to Louisville Fox affiliate WDRB, a BCHS investigation revealed that Curry drank five beers, eight shots and a half bottle of liquor at a golf fundraiser. Profits from alcohol sales benefited the cheerleading team. Documents revealed that shots were being sold for $1 at the event.
"Anyone who participates in this type of activity in a public manner and is affiliated with the school district is still held to a certain standard of behavior,” Bullitt County Public Schools attorney Eric Farris said. "The selling of alcohol or shots would be prohibited and it would be contrary to board policy as well."
According to a report from the investigation into the matter, the donated alcohol was intended to be used as part of a game of chance requiring skill. “This practice falls within Redbook rules governing booster clubs,” the report concludes. “However, selling alcohol by the shot is NOT within acceptable Redbook rules."
In a letter to the superintendent, principal Erik Huber said that Curry was excessively drunk and became belligerent. Documents show Curry "became loud again screaming across the golf course at another team that included the cheerleading coach, James Moore, that they were [homophobic slur]."
Farris said that Curry has been extremely apologetic for his behavior.
School officials say Curry vomited on himself in the golf cart, and the assistant athletic director took Curry home in the back of his pickup truck.
Huber recommended Curry be fired from his position as head basketball and golf coach. He also recommended that Curry, who remains a faculty member, attend an alcohol abuse course and issue letters of apology to the golf course, parents and the team involved in the incidents.
