PicoBlog

Branham’s athletic department has been a beacon of public school success in Silicon Valley, an area where high school athletics has been otherwise dominated by private schools.

In the current school year alone, the Bruins celebrated a football league championship, won a section title in girls basketball and reached the CCS Open Division in boys basketball for the first time in program history, something no member of the BVAL had done since 2014.

Yet athletic director Landon Jacobs, who’s held the position since 2009, was informed in March that he’s being relieved of his AD duties and being reassigned to neighboring Del Mar to teach history.

It’s a decision that has galvanized the Branham community, coming to a crescendo on Thursday night when Jacobs’ supporters packed a Campbell Union High School District meeting to show their support to keep him in the position.

The crowd included current and former student athletes, coaches, parents, boosters and even Jacobs’ ex-wife, Lisa.

“For me to be up here speaking means that I absolutely believe in his hard work,” Lisa said. “When I had our son on a Monday, we came home from the hospital on a Wednesday, there was a football game on a Friday, and Landon went, because he believed that being present at athletic events was essential.”

While Jacobs was lauded for his constant presence at events, speakers who came up throughout the public comment session noted principal Lindsay Schubert’s lack of willingness to attend events outside of school hours.

“Presence-centered leadership is essential,” Lisa Jacobs said.

“I’ve heard that the principal sees athletics as a distraction from academics,” said Danielle Short, a parent of a Branham freshman softball player and an eighth grader who may consider attending another school if Jacobs is removed. “I believe that athletics can support academics. In the 2010-2011 year, 126 athletes became academically ineligible during their season. Since then, they eliminated the probationary period and implemented an academic monitoring system. That number fell from 126 to just 30 by the 2018-2019 school year, and that’s even in the face of the Branham population increasing.”

Jacobs’ supporters have identified Schubert as the opposition, the one pushing for his removal. In an email to the Bay Area News Group, Schubert confirmed that his removal was her decision, though she said was unable to share any details. Multiple speakers at Thursday night’s meeting stated that Jacobs’ removal stems from allegations of mishandling athletic department funds.

“This principal has lost her mind. She’s using whatever opportunity she can to get people out,” said Shawna Rodriguez, whose two sons have been part of the Branham athletic department. “I don’t know her. The only time I saw her was when she spoke at my son’s graduation last year. We’ve really gotta look at what she’s doing.”

In Jacobs’ 14 years, Branham has won eight CCS championships and 57 league titles, setting the school apart from many of its BVAL counterparts. The athletic game between public and private schools in San Jose has widened exponentially in recent years, and across multiple sports, the Bruins have been among the few that have gone against the grain.

“Athletics saved my children,” Short said. “They’ve been through COVID, they’ve been through mental health issues. I went to school for math. That ain’t my kids. They get up for softball. They get up for basketball. And when they get there, they’re interested in athletics and academics. I shudder to think what would happen if this program is diminished.”

Short also noted that the athletic department is one of the biggest assets at Branham.

“I’m a single parent. I’m doin’ it by myself. And when I hear about the decision that this principal is making, I don’t know if I wanna bring my son here next year,” Short continued. “I’m thinking about if I need to go under my couch cushions and scrape my pennies together and call my friend who’s president of Mitty and send my kids there.”

If Short’s son does attend Branham, he’ll be playing basketball and joining the only BVAL program to play in the CCS Open Division in a decade. The two previous BVAL schools to reach the Open Division did so at a time when the WCAL, the dominant power in the area, could only send a maximum of four teams to the tournament.

In reaching the Open Division, the Bruins squared off against Mitty, one of two programs to appear in all 12 editions of the tournament. While they lost 73-56, just getting on the court with the Monarchs was a victory. Only one other BVAL team had played a regular season or playoff game against Mitty in the past 13 seasons, and that was during the spring 2021 COVID season.

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