Burks Addresses Concerns to Board of Ed.

NEWBURGH – Dozens of students, parents and concerned community residents filled the Newburgh Enlarged City School District Board of Education meeting last Tuesday night to show their support for the High School Track and Field Coach Malcolm Burks.

A decorated service member, and recent recipient of the “Key to the City,” Burks during the public comment portion wanted to emphasize his graduation rate of his student athletes and his students’ acceptance rate into college.

However, Coach Burks had to address a situation that took place at the Saturday meet involving a parent in the stands. He said, the parent was talking about him (negatively) to the students and that he told the parent, “Sir, with all due respect, I do not appreciate when you talk to my athletes about me. He told me, it’s in my police report, which I gave to the A.D. (athletic director), I do whatever the f*&k I want to do. I don’t know who the f*&k you think you are. These are not your kids.”

Coach Burks went to notify security. They called the police department and they removed the person from the meet. Burks would file a police report and filed for an order of protection against the individual.

On Monday, during track practice, the parent whom Burke had the encounter with on Saturday was present. Coach Burks chose not to stay and coach, but remove himself from the situation so things would not escalate further. The school began an investigation, as a result, Coach Burks is not allowed to interact with kids, with two of the biggest recruiting meets upcoming.

Board of Education member Mark Levinstein said he too, “didn’t understand.” Levinstein had not heard of the incident and was seemingly caught off guard. “The first I heard of this incident is when the audience starting speaking to it. I don’t understand why the board members, and I’m assuming everyone here, did not know about this, hear about this. I don’t know the details, and I just don’t know why an incident that’s being described as quite important, was not brought forward to the board members.”

The Board then went into executive session. A call for comment was made to the board, but was not returned.