The562’s coverage of Long Beach Wilson Athletics is sponsored by Joel Bitonio, Class of 2009.
Wilson girls’ basketball coach Erin Carey announced her resignation recently, taking the rare step of resigning midseason due to what she said was overwhelming negative criticism from parents in the team.
“It wasn’t an easy decision,” she said. “It was just relentless criticism on my integrity and character based on decisions I made within the program, all the way down to playing time.”
The Bruins won a historic CIF-SS championship under Carey and had been a much-improved program after years as a Moore League also-ran. Carey was a popular coach who’d maintained relationships with several former Wilson players, and was well-respected within the city’s coaching ranks.
“My name is everything, my character is everything,” she said. “Am I willing to be a punching bag for people? No, I’m not. We get stipends, yes, but these are basically volunteer jobs. My tenure there proved I know what I’m doing as a coach.”
Carey said that the Wilson administration was supportive of her and of her decision to step away. She also said that while the decision to step down was difficult, she felt it was morally necessary—as was the decision to speak out about the reasons why.
“On my arm I have tattooed, ‘Speak the truth even if your voice shakes,’” she said. “I emphasize to my players to be honest. I know hundreds of coaches who’ve stepped down or left coaching over stuff like this. It shouldn’t happen. Until we start drawing attention to it, it won’t get better. A lot of times coaches spend more time with kids than their parents do—you get upset and start ripping a coach apart, you’re talking to a human being.”
Wilson principal Suzanne Caverly and assistant principal Stacie Alexander wrote a letter to the Wilson basketball families addressing the issue head on—a rare move in an era where administrators often prefer to hide behind vague language to communicating honestly.
“It is unfortunate that the condition of the girls’ program resulted in the loss of such a quality coach at Wilson High School,” they wrote in a jointly-signed letter. “It is unimaginable that we will be able to replace the spirit, character, professionalism, and expertise that coach Carey brought to the Wilson girls’ basketball program and overall school community.”
The letter said that assistants DJ Butler and Samantha McComb also stepped down, and that the team was on a two-week hiatus over the winter break.
Alexander confirmed in a recent phone call that another well-respected coach, longtime Stanford middle school coach Hank Waddles, will be taking over as interim coach for the rest of the season. The Bruins will resume activity on Jan. 8.
