APRIL 30, 1979: Campbell AD Marlyn Burke faces first challenge

In 1977 track and field coach Marlyn Burke was celebrated as Hawaii’s first female athletic director.

On this day in 1979, the honeymoon was officially over.

Campbell football coach Bernard Daos led a revolt against Burke, submitting his letter of resignation a week before spring practice along with track and field coach Allan Nash and wrestling coach Steve Ching. Golf coach Bill Bartlow also resigned, but changed his mind the next day.

Daos cited ‘personal reasons’ but Nash pointed the finger directly at Burke by saying administration had ‘taken the enjoyment from coaching and replaced it with frustration.’ Burke said that stricter grade checks were the reason for the resignations, but Nash said that was a small part of it.

Daos led Campbell to a 7-2-1 record in his first year as varsity coach after winning the JV title the year before. He finished his head coaching career 14-13-1.

Campbell replaced Daos with Al Ontiveros, who went 4-15 before the situation repeated itself. Ontiveros and his entire staff quit the day before the season opener, saying that Burke was impossible to work for.

Ontiveros was replaced by 23-year old wrestling coach Jake Kawamata, who went 2-7-1 but rebounded with a winning season two years later. He finished with a 15-30-1 record at Campbell and Leilehua.

Burke said “I think maybe a lot of these guys want my job,” and by 1983 she stepped down and was replaced by football and basketball coach Bob Nakagawa. She lasted six years as an athletic director and died in 1990 at the age of 53.

Campbell won a state baseball championship during her reign as AD.

Annette Fujii became Hawaii’s second female athletic director a few months later, taking over at Honokaa.