HONOLULU (HawaiiNewsNow) - The first games of the inaugural girls flag football season made history in Hawaii.
“It was really exciting. I was like wow,” said parent Penny Toilolo.
But the groundbreaking season is now tarnished by what parents call negligence after Kakuku High and Intermediate School’s varsity flag football team lost to Castle High School in Kaneohe on March 25.
Girls flag football players and a parent group, Kahuku Movement for Change, say during the post-game chaos, Kahuku’s athletic director Gillian Yamagata allegedly ordered the girls to hastily change and hand over their uniforms or the team would be fined for not leaving in 15 minutes.
In a phone recording released to Hawaii News Now, one player said some team members asked to go to the restroom, but were forced to change in the field’s end zone.
“She (Yamagata) was getting mad at us so we had to change exactly where we were. And our coaches were there, all the parents were walking by,” said the Kahuku flag football player.
“She was rushing us and we were getting really upset,” she added.
“According to the girls, they just took it off. They had their sports bra and they just threw something on,” said Toilolo, who’s also part of a new parent group called Kahuku Movement for Change.
Toilolo said the players passed around a jacket and used to it cover themselves as they changed out of their uniforms.
“They gave that jacket to somebody else so they could change. Mind you, coaches are on the field, parents are in the crowd and they are in the end zone changing,” said Toilolo.
“I felt uncomfortable so me and and my friend we decided to just change fast,” said Toilolo’s daughter, 16-year-old Naheari?i Toilolo, who changed on the school bus.
Naheari?i Toilolo told HNN Yamagata opened the back door of the school bus and ordered other players to change on the bus.
To avoid embarrassment, Penny Toilolo says a male coach and male bus driver got off the bus.
“A lot of girls were confused at the same time. She (Yamagata) wanted the uniforms so they were trying to hide in the seats and stuff and just change real quick and just get it done as fast as possible,” she said.
Joseph Rosenbaum is a civil rights attorney.
“There’s definitely an issue with compliance. There’s an issue with negligence. There’s definitely exposure to claims,” said Rosenbaum.
In 2023, Campbell High School, Hawaii’s largest public school settled a landmark Title IX gender equity lawsuit after female athletes said they had to change in teacher’s closets, bathrooms and a nearby Burger King while boys had their own locker room.
“It’s hard to really fathom that after all the litigation and these issues having already been addressed allegedly that the girls are having to put up with the same or similar type of issues,” said Rosenbaum.
The Hawaii State Department of Education (HIDOE) said in a statement: “After being notified, the principal reported the alleged incident involving female student-athletes to the Department’s Civil Rights Compliance Branch. The school also updated its procedures to ensure clarity and consistency. Moving forward, athletes are given the opportunity to change in a designated locker room or bathroom for away games, and coaches will collect uniforms upon return to campus.”
HNN asked additional questions about when the updated protocols went into effect and the rule for leaving games quickly.
“The school updated its procedures for away games immediately after being notified of the incident. The updated procedures were in effect by the next away game,” the HIDOE said.
“For the safety of student-athletes, the OIA requires visiting teams to depart the field within 15 minutes of the end of the game. Failure to do so may result in a fine,” the statement added.
Parents say the changing incidents continued after the March 25 game and players ended up wearing their regular clothes under their uniforms.
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