Coach suing Michigan State, AD Alan Haller, alleging discrimination

A longtime strength and conditioning coach at Michigan State University is suing the university and athletic director Alan Haller, claiming he was demoted and discriminated against based on his race, age and the fact he has a disability.
In a suit filed Thursday in U.S. District Court in the Western District of Michigan, Mike Vorkapich, 52, says Haller and deputy athletic director Ashton Henderson, Vorkapich’s supervisor, discriminated against him, leading to being demoted twice, excluded from meetings, forced to work in an isolated office and left out of decisions “relevant to his job.”
The suit goes on to say that “younger, less qualified, female, black, and nondisabled individuals have been promoted ahead of plaintiff and treated better in the name of ‘diversity.’ ”
Vorkapich, who is White and says he has Tourette syndrome, claims in the lawsuit that once he complained to Haller and Henderson, who are both Black, about how he was being treated, “he experienced retaliation in the terms and conditions of his employment.”
Tourette syndrome is a nervous system condition that causes people to have uncontrollable, repetitive movements or make unwanted sounds.
Vorkapich has worked with several programs within the athletic department, most recently with the men's hockey team. His university bio says he also has been involved with the football team and the men's and women's basketball programs.
Michigan State spokesman Matt Larson said the university would not comment on pending litigation.
“I have taken the very difficult step of suing my alma mater and current employer — the institution to which I have devoted my career,” Vorkapich said in a statement emailed to The News.
“As detailed in my complaint, I have experienced discriminatory treatment based on my age, gender, race and disability and been retaliated against by the university and senior members of the athletics department. I cannot stand idly by after the university has demoted me twice in a year without warning or any failing in my performance whatsoever. While I support the goals of diversity and inclusion, I am entitled to be treated in a fair and lawful manner.”
The suit claims the mistreatment began after Haller became Michigan State’s athletic director in September 2021 and continued when Henderson joined the staff in February 2022.
According to Vorkapich's lawsuit, younger employees, female employees and Black employees were given promotions or raises multiple times that were not based on merit.
According to the lawsuit, Vorkapich was told during a May 19, 2022, meeting with Henderson that he was being demoted, having his salary reduced and that he’d be taking over mostly administrative tasks. The suit says these actions were taken in “order to promote less qualified, less experienced and younger staff which includes females and persons of color in the name of diversity.”
In one instance, the suit claims a younger, less-experienced female member of the athletic performance staff was promoted and given a raise after Vorkapich raised concerns over her job performance. When she was promoted, the lawsuit says Vorkapich was led to believe it was because she was a woman.
Another example cited included the recent promotion of Lorenzo Guess to director of athletic performance. The suit claims Guess, who is Black, does not have the qualifications to hold the position.
However, according to Michigan State’s website, Guess, a former football and basketball player at Michigan State, was named a Master Strength and Conditioning Coach (MSCC) by the Collegiate Strength and Conditioning Coaches association (CSCCa) in May 2020, the highest honor given in the strength and conditioning coaching profession and is a certified strength and conditioning specialist with the National Strength and Conditioning Association (NSCA).
Other examples of promotions included in the lawsuit claim both age and race discrimination.
In early July, Vorkapich filed a Charge of Discrimination with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, alleging race, gender, age, and disability discrimination and retaliation. The lawsuit says Vorkapich has since experienced continued mistreatment and retaliation by the defendants.
Vorkapich, who was promoted to director of athletic performance/sports science in 2020, now holds the title of assistant coach of professional development & special projects. He is suing to be reinstated to his previous position, or a higher position that he would now hold if he had not been demoted.
He is also seeking back pay for wages lost. If he is not reinstated, he is asking the university to be ordered to pay him for wages he'd have earned through his retirement age of 67.