Digger Phelps says he has a reason to be angry, after he says the South Bend Schools bull-dozed basketball courts that he paid for. Like many school districts across our country, it's no secret that many students in South Bend schools have faced financial and academic struggles. But that said, there are many in the community trying to make a difference.

Phelps is the former Notre Dame men's basketball coach and well-known supporter of local causes. He says he donated $35,000 for two basketball courts outside Marquette school, but he feels like his donation was squandered.

In the year 2000, Phelps says he spent his own money to build two full-size basketball courts outside the school, meant for the students and kids in the neighborhood. So you can imagine his surprise when he flew over the basketball courts on a flight home to South Bend this weekend and discovered the concrete and hoops were demolished.

South Bend School officials say the construction work is being done to make way for the new Marquette school on that property.

Whatever the reason, Phelps is disappointed no one warned him that his donation would be destroyed. He voiced his concerns at Monday night's South Bend School Board meeting.

In the future, Phelps says he wonders what kind of example this sets for other people who might be interested in donating to South Bend Schools.

"I'm just totally shocked, because if you get people involved in the community to give money for projects and then this is how you treat people, well then I can see why people don't want to get involved, if this is the mindset of the school board, let alone what's going on with the school itself," says Phelps.

"I'm disappointed that it happened," says South Bend School Board member Roger Parent. "First of all, he should have been informed that there was a problem and they'd have to be torn down. And secondly, I'm wondering if they had to be torn down immediately. Maybe we could have waited a little bit, but I don't have all the facts. I'm saying that knowing full well there might be some other explanation."

Newscenter 16 asked South Bend Superintendent Jim Kapsa about the issue of the basketball courts. Kapsa says plans for the new Marquette school have been in the works since last year, but says this was the first he's heard about Phelps being upset about the destruction. Kapsa says he'll look into the issue more.