Posted on 07/13/2009 8:14:22 PM PDT by Maelstorm
Litchfield – Litchfield school officials reacted swiftly to an outcry from parents concerned about stories students were assigned to read in a Campbell High School English class.
"Some of these stories contained explicit, vulgar and gratuitous language and school administrators have determined that these stories are not appropriate for a high school curriculum," School Superintendent Elaine Cutler said in a statement yesterday.
She said some stories assigned in the Short Stories class have been immediately removed from the curriculum and the entire course will be "reviewed and revised" over the summer.
The statement comes one day after approximately 25 parents and community members attended a school board meeting to voice their concerns.
"In this case, there was an error in judgement," school board Chairman Dennis Miller said. "We want to reassure the public this is not something we want taught."
Parent Sue Ann Johnson first raised concerns to Campbell administrators on June 8 when she sent Shorts Stories teacher Meredith Potter an e-mail after learning the David Sedaris story "I Like Guys," about the author's exploration of his own sexuality, was assigned to her son.
"When talking with our children about school work, we discovered an assignment regarding a story that my husband and I believe to be completely inappropriate for high school," Johnson wrote to Potter. She said the story, "left me wondering who is in charge of what our children are exposed to under the guise of 'education.'"
In correspondence provided by Johnson, Potter wrote back that "the essay is in an approved textbook, and I am sorry if you feel it is inappropriate. I did not write the curriculum for the class, but am following the one that was established previously and approved by the school administration.
"If you have further concerns, I can only point you to the English department curriculum facilitator, Kathleen Reilly."
Other stories that were questioned included "The Crack Cocaine Diet" by Laura Lippman, an Ernest Hemingway short story that includes statutory rape and discussion about abortion, and the Stephen King story "Survivor Type."
Johnson said she met four days later with Reilly, who she said defended the inclusion of the Sedaris story as well as others.
Reilly did not respond to a request for comment last night.
The decision of the district to remove the stories was lauded by Johnson and Kevin Smith, a Litchfield resident who is the executive director of the conservative Cornerstone Policy Research.
"Hopefully, someone will be held accountable," said Smith, who also attended Wednesday's meeting. "But this is a great first step. I think it shows common sense prevailed in this case."
Smith said his group made phone calls to Litchfield residents before the school board meeting to make them aware of the issue.
"The first step is up to parents to make sure this stuff isn't being taught in their child's classroom," Smith said.
State Rep. Laura Gandia, who also attended Wednesday's meeting, said she requested the subject of curriculum to be put on the agenda for next Wednesday's school board meeting.
"There are still unanswered questions," Gandia said. "People still need to be held accountable."
I liked the ‘80’s, too. Great times back then.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.