Highland Community College in northeast Kansas directed its coaches to recruit more White athletes, according to a federal lawsuit filed last week by the American Civil Liberties Union of Kansas, said an Associated Press report on KMBC News.
The lawsuit also alleged the college excessively scrutinized prospective Black students, with measures like background checks, before offering them scholarships.
Filed on behalf of four former and current students, the lawsuit named Eric Ingmire, Highland’s vice president for student services, and Bryan Dorrel, the college’s athletic director, as defendants. The news report said the two people named didn’t respond to messages seeking comment.
In the 2019 season, 104 of the 111 football players were Black. The 2020 football recruiting class includes “a significantly lower number” of Black athletes, the lawsuit alleged, adding that Dorrel told coaches to recruit “more local kids” and “less Southern kids.”
