Branham athletics saga: Volleyball coach speaks out, hopes to return next year

SAN JOSE — After Branham’s boys volleyball team was eliminated from the section playoffs on Thursday night, coach Heather Cooper broke her silence.

The woman who lost her bookkeeping job last fall addressed the cloud that began with her removal and reached another level of darkness this spring when athletic director Landon Jacobs was dismissed, too.

“No matter what happens, I will continue to fight because I’m innocent,” said Cooper, who after a leave of absence returned to coach the boys and girls teams. “I feel like my character and my love for Branham is being tarnished and it’s hurtful.”

Neither the school district, nor Cooper or Jacobs has publicly revealed any details about why the personnel moves were made in the athletic department.

But a 12-page formal complaint filed last month to the district office by supporters of the popular athletic administrators revealed that Jacobs and Cooper were accused of misappropriation of Associated Student Body funds and not following financial policies after a district audit for the 2022-23 school year.

While Cooper called herself a “clerical assistant to the athletic department” in a Friday text message and is listed on the Central Coast Section’s website as an “AD Assistant”, the district said her official title was as the associated student body bookkeeper.

The complaint called for the reinstatement of Jacobs and Cooper and the removal of principal Lindsay Schubert, who according to the complaint fostered a culture that does not support high school athletics.

Schubert has accepted a job as an assistant principal at Los Gatos High effective July 1, the Los Gatos-Saratoga Union High School District announced at its board meeting this week.

Emails to Schubert and Campbell Union High School District superintendent Robert Bravo on Friday were not immediately returned.

According to sources close to the situation, Cooper’s removal stems from a check reimbursement form that she submitted to the school administration.

“I have absolutely nothing to hide in any of this,” Cooper said. “I have been honest from the beginning. I made an honest mistake. I was more than willing to fix it if I was given that opportunity, and unfortunately I wasn’t.”

After Cooper lost her job in the athletic department, she briefly left the team but returned before the season ended. Her team had won Central Coast Section titles the previous two seasons.

Even with the uncertainty, Cooper led Branham’s girls team to the CCS Division I semifinals last fall and did the same for the boys team this spring.

“These teams have been giving me that bright light that I’ve needed for the past 10 months,” Cooper said. “I think that what kills me the most is that the seasons have come to an end.”

Her absence from the girls program stunned the Branham community.

“This was a team that was trying to three-peat as CCS champions and a week into the season, our coach was gone,” a source close to the program told the Bay Area News Group. “Multiple parents reached out to get answers and we didn’t get any. … The only form of communication came after the fact and we were told in an email from the principal to not ask any evasive questions about the coach’s situation.”

Months after Cooper’s ouster from the athletic department, Jacobs was let go, sparking outrage among supporters that led to a change.org petition that has more than 1,500 signatures.

In interviews with the Bay Area News Group, Jacobs said he was told that his removal in March was based on performance. He has declined to provide any more clarity.

Jacobs had been in charge of the school’s athletic department for 14 years, leading it to eight CCS and 57 league championships.

Cooper attended her first hearing on the matter last week in an attempt to defend herself in front of the board. Sources in attendance said little progress was made and discussions will continue at a future hearing.

In spite of all that has happened, Cooper said she hopes she will be allowed to return to Branham next school year at least in her coaching capacity.

She said the past few months have been difficult and taken a toll on her mental health.

“For the past 18 years, I’ve been putting my blood, sweat and tears into the Branham community,” Cooper said. “I’ve tried to make a difference not only on the court, but on campus. I’m 1,000% there for the students and that’s why I want to continue to be here. We’ve had a great atmosphere with the culture at Branham High School as a family and that’s what I know the school as, and unfortunately, not being there is different.”

Cooper found solace in coaching this past year, but said she is unsure about her future at Branham.

Cooper said she has leaned on Jacobs throughout the saga and is hoping that they will be back in their previous roles in the athletic department when the matter is resolved.

“Our goal is to be there for the student-athletes and that’s how it should be,” she said. “That’s what we created for the athletic department. It’s about our student-athletes and how we can make them better versions of themselves on and off the court and the field. We are just gonna stay strong and pray that we’re back next year.”