Recently revealed documents show Jason Hawkins, former San Jose State baseball head coach, sexually and racially harassed his players during his “story time” between 2016-17.
The revelation is the latest in a series of sexual misconduct scandals involving the university’s athletics.
The details of Hawkins’ quiet resignation and abuse toward his players was first published on Thursday by EdSource, which accessed Title IX investigation documents through the Public Records Act requests.
Hawkins’ “story times” were composed of explicit sex references and the degradation of women and LGBTQ+ people, including people known by the players and coaches, according to the Thursday EdSource article.
The players were unwilling listeners, Title IX investigators wrote in the investigation documents obtained by EdSource, players said they were afraid of consequences and had no choice but to listen to Hawkins’ crude and offensive sex stories.
During story time, Hawkins would gather the players in a semicircle in front of him, with the coaches behind him, which he told investigators he wanted to loosen up the players before the game by making them laugh, according to the EdSource article.
The Title IX investigation reported that Hawkins trawled the internet for sex jokes to tell the players and sometimes would make himself the protagonist, according to the same article. Other times he’d make one of the players the butt of the joke, naming them. He also talked about bestiality, the report stated.
“I felt uncomfortable when he said the jokes, but I never talked to the coach,” one player told the Title IX investigators, according to the EdSource article. “The jokes were foul and unnecessary,” another player said.
As the season wore on, the investigators were told, story time became more unpopular.
“Some of the student-athletes indicated they could tell the assistant coaches were not in favor of the jokes by their behavior and facial expressions,” investigators wrote in the investigation report that was obtained by EdSource. “They stated the coaches would look away, put their heads down or not attend the pre-game story time.”
Hawkins, who assumed his position in September 2016, resigned in 2018 after he was placed on leave on Dec. 23, 2017 because of the investigation and no disciplinary action was taken against him.
SJSU posted a news release on Feb. 12, 2018 about his resignation and provided no explanation, which is similar to how the university announced the resignation of the former women’s gymnastics head coach, Wayne Wright.
Wright was forced to resign in 2018 after an investigation found he repeatedly bullied and harassed the members of the team, according to an Aug. 7 Mercury News article.
Those two recent revelations of abuse and misconduct from former baseball and gymnastics coaches respectively came about nine months after former SJSU president Mary Papazian resigned.
Papazian resigned in December 2021 after the Department of Justice reported in September that year that she ignored claims of sexual abuse from former trainer Scott Shaw for 12 years, according to previous Spartan Daily reporting.
SJSU counselor education professor Jason Laker said he feels angry about the recently revealed investigations of Hawkins and Wright, undermining his feelings toward the university’s administration.
“It’s hard for me to understand. I have a doctorate in higher ed. This is 30 years I have been working in higher ed, I am literally a global expert on higher ed,” Laker said in a Zoom call. “For the life of me, I do not understand the mindset that gravitates toward hiding and suppressing and containing.”
Michelle Smith McDonald, SJSU senior director of media relations, said because of privacy concerns, the details of Hawkins’ resignation were not made public.
“SJSU typically does not disclose publicly the reasons for an employee resignation,” Smith McDonald said in an email.
The Title IX investigation into Hawkins began on July 31, 2018, when an assistant coach filed a workplace grievance against him with accusations of sexual harassment, according to the EdSource article.
Over the course of two months, investigators assigned to the complaint interviewed 33 people affiliated with the team, including Hawkins, according to the same article.
The investigation reported specific incidents of harassment by Hawkins, including when he used the slur “chink in the armor” to describe a team weakness when looking directly at an Asian team member, according to the EdSource article.
In another instance, a Black player told the Title IX investigators that Hawkins used the N-word in celebration when he hit a home run. Investigators wrote that the player was shocked by the comment but felt he had no choice but to tell Hawkins it was “all good” because he wanted to play, according to the same article.
Hawkins, who initially denied to investigators that he used the slur, changed his story stating he did but meant it in “a playful way,” according to the EdSource article.
He told investigators he “believed this action was okay because the player had done something positive and additionally, the player did not object,” according to the EdSource article.
As Title IX investigators began looking into the workplace grievance filed by the assistant coach, it was revealed that Hawkins had been conducting more team practices than the NCAA allows. In turn, a second investigation was also conducted, according to the EdSource article.
Months after resigning in February 2018, Hawkins assumed the roles of the assistant principal and athletic director at a high school in Plumas County, which is in northern Sierra Nevada.
The Plumas County Unified School District suspended Hawkins on Friday in the wake of EdSource’s reporting while the district investigates “potential misconduct” since he joined, according to a Friday EdSource article.
Plumas Superintendent William Roderick declined to comment to EdSource about Hawkins’ suspension, but he had told the reporter on Sept. 6 that Hawkins was working that day, according to the EdSource article.
Smith McDonald said SJSU didn’t receive a request for reference of employment from the Plumas County Unified School District.
She said the university adhered to California State University Policy Item V, which states that CSUs are required to share employee records that relate to job performance and history.
Laker said he believes SJSU is constantly responding to scandals of misconduct instead of institutionally preventing them.
He said if the university was to actually put efforts toward reform, then it would be common practice to fire someone when they violate policies of Title IX and harassment, discrimination and retaliation.
“That to me is a very powerful accountability tool for prevention,” he said. “But no, you bargain and try to stick around and then if it doesn't look like it's working, you resign and move on to the next job,” he said. “Anything that happens with those people who go elsewhere, San Jose State is morally culpable, in addition to whoever else.”
Laker said he believes more victims and investigations at SJSU will eventually come to light because the university hasn’t scratched the surface of institutional restructuring that would exemplify impressive integrity.
“This university, like so many, just not does not have the moral courage to own up to its failures beyond the superficial talking point,” Laker said.
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Bryanna Bartlett and Nathan Canilao contributed to this article
