Carol Simon, the longtime head coach of Brandeis' women's basketball team, has retired after players threatened to quit the team.
A spokesperson for Brandeis confirmed Simon's retirement to GBH News on Monday without offering further comment.
The students asserted that Simon created a toxic culture, with allegations ranging from use of racist language to a disregard for player injuries to poor coaching.
The university reinstated Simon as head coach last month after nearly a year of paid administrative leave. The decision to bring Simon back prompted the players on the team to write a letter to Simon stating that most of them would be unwilling to play for her going forward.
According to the Boston Globe, the school announced on Friday that Simon would be stepping down.
The move ends a saga that had left Brandeis without proper leadership for all of the previous women's basketball season. Under interim head coach Jill Latanowich, the Judges racked up a 5-20 record.
Simon, who was inducted into the New England Basketball Hall of Fame in 2010, led the Judges to a 692-647 record during her time with the Division III team.
This is not the first time Brandeis has faced enhanced scrutiny over a coach. In 2018, the university fired men's basketball coach Brian Meehan after similar allegations of discriminatory and toxic behavior.
Problems with coaching is not an issue that has not been isolated to the Waltham-based university. Last year, longtime Harvard women's hockey coach Katey Stone announced her retirement as an investigation into an allegedly toxic environment in her program was underway.
