In the wake of community and media attention on the racist incident at Park Hill South High School in Riverside at the end of September, the district late last week issued a joint statement with the Kansas City NAACP.
In late September, a small group of Park Hill South students created an online petition to bring back slavery and published it on Change.org for other people to find and sign.
Officers from the NAACP met with officials from the Park Hill School District last week to discuss the incident and ask for accountability in the district’s response. The NAACP (National Association for the Advancement of Colored People) is committed to ensuring the political, educational, social and economic equality of minority citizens of the United States and to be proactive in addressing racial discrimination.
After the meeting, the two groups agreed to issue this joint statement.
Rev. Dr. Rodney Williams, president of the Kansas City branch of the NAACP, summarized that the organization came to these conclusions:
The NAACP believes that the students of Park Hill South High School have voiced their concerns, that they have been heard and that measures are being put in place to ensure that their concerns continue to be heard.
The NAACP believes that the Park Hill School District has taken the necessary steps to ensure the safety of the students at Park Hill South High School.
The NAACP believes that the Park Hill School District has been proactive in its response.
The NAACP believes that the Park Hill School District is appropriately following its discipline policies and processes to ensure accountability for these acts.
Dr. Jeanette Cowherd, superintendent of the Park Hill School District, stated the following:
The Park Hill School District is committed to working with the NAACP in addressing its policies and programs that impact minority students.
The Park Hill School District will seek the advice and counsel of the NAACP in furthering its strategic plan.
The Park Hill School District will provide ongoing updates to the NAACP to demonstrate that they are fulfilling their commitment to respond properly.
Cowherd announced on Monday, Sept. 27 that the district would hire an expert on racism to advise the district on the handling of such matters. Race relations has proved to be a re-occurring problem in the district. Last year, Park Hill South’s then-interim principal Kerrie Herren forced volleyball players to remove their racial unity shirts, sparking off a local media fire storm. Herren later apologized for the incident and the girls team was later allowed to wear the “we will rise” unity shirts, but tensions remained high.
Herren is the current principal at Park Hill South, and Cowherd praised his handling of the current situation and said racism “will not be tolerated.”
However, members of the community at the Park Hill Board of Education meeting held on Thursday, Sept. 23 were not pleased with the district’s actions thus far.
Parents in attendance at the meeting said the online petition involved more than just a few kids. They said the anonymity of the students involved, lack of details and perceived delay in a district response continued to victimize students of color.