Trial set for lawsuit by ex-baseball coach against Ramapo College. Here's what it claims
A jury trial date has been set for a lawsuit by a former Ramapo College baseball coach who alleged in 2019 that he was subjected to racial bias and age discrimination and eventually fired for blowing the whistle on unlawful activity involving the team.
Victor Rosario is suing the school and several administrators employed at the time, alleging he was "unlawfully terminated" from his assistant coaching position in November 2018 after the athletic department ignored his requests to report code-of-conduct issues by other coaches on the staff. The trial is slated to begin May 28, said Rosario's attorney, Steve Farsiou.
The lawsuit also says Rosario, a Puerto Rican who was 51 at the time of his firing, was replaced by younger, white coaches "who had little or no experience." Additionally, it says Black and Hispanic players were the targets of racism and harassment from fellow players and team officials.
Farsiou, in a statement to The Record, said Ramapo promotes a perception of being in favor of diversity, equity and inclusion, "but in reality, it's the complete opposite."
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Defendants named in the suit include Peter P. Mercer, then the president of Ramapo; Harold Crocker, then the school's athletic director; and Jan Koslowsky, the assistant athletic director at the time who replaced Crocker upon his retirement in 2021. The suit also identified the college board of trustees and Vice Presidents Christopher Romano and Virginia Galdieri as defendants.
A Ramapo College spokesperson said the school could not comment on pending litigation. The New Jersey Attorney General's Office, which is representing the defendants, did not respond to a request for comment Monday afternoon.
The suit says Rosario, a longtime Ramapo assistant who also held scouting positions for several Major League Baseball teams, was told by Crocker in May 2017 that he would be named associate head coach as the team's top assistant. Crocker also said in the same meeting that Rosario would replace head coach Richard Martin when Martin retired.
In October 2017, Martin was suspended for the fall and the following spring seasons after using his training to help a player "who was having some serious mental health issues," the lawsuit says. Rosario, who had been reclassified as a volunteer head coach that August after the defendants told him there was not enough money to pay all the assistants, became the "de facto" head coach until the season ended in November.
After the fall season ended, Crocker and Koslowsky called a meeting with all the assistant coaches but "specifically excluded" Rosario, the suit contends. By the end of 2017 and through the 2018 season, Rosario had been cut out of all meetings and team group chats, and another assistant was named interim coach.
Around June 2018, Rosario was told both he and Martin would be retained for the 2018-2019 season, according to the suit. Rosario signed his coaching agreement in August, shortly after it was determined in a meeting between the two coaches and Crocker that Martin would finish out his contract and be replaced as head coach by Rosario.
When speaking privately with Crocker the next month, Rosario referred to alleged NCAA violations that occurred under the interim coach, including underage drinking parties with coaches, gambling activity and changing of players' grades. Martin had also brought up the reported infractions during a previous meeting with Crocker and said he did not want the interim coach back on staff, the suit says.
Crocker "became visibly upset" at the mention of the alleged violations, according to the suit. He told Rosario that if the coach discussed them with anyone else, he would make sure that the allegations would be charged to Rosario and Martin.
Shortly after the meeting, Martin was told by human resources that he had violated Ramapo policy by driving a golf cart with a student earlier that summer and would be fired in the coming months, the lawsuit says. This marked the first time the head coach was advised of the violation, it says.
After pressure from the school, Martin eventually retired as head coach effective Nov. 1, 2018. Rosario was then fired after being told his services were no longer needed, an action that "blindsided" him, according to the suit.
"It was clear the Defendants terminated Plaintiff based on Plaintiff's reporting of the above violations and unlawful conduct and his demand that an investigation take place," the lawsuit says.
The suit says the Ramapo officials named as defendants "have turned a blind eye to the continuous pattern and practice of discrimination against non-white athletes and [Rosario]." It alleges that during the 2019 season, coaches and players made racial jokes and singled out a Black player for violating team rules.
Rosario was also told throughout his 17 years as a Ramapo employee that "nothing good comes from people who come out of the Bronx," according to the lawsuit — a statement he interpreted as a reference to his ethnicity. The school instead wanted more New Jersey residents, contending that the New York City school system did not adequately prepare students for college, the suit says.
As a result of his firing, it says, Rosario has suffered loss of employment opportunities, mental anguish and emotional distress, among other damages.
This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: Ramapo College lawsuit by former baseball coach to go to trial
