Fulton Public Schools (FPS) is launching a comprehensive investigation during its spring break after physical education teachers conducted a class activity that has parents and participating students upset.
In a first-hour middle school physical education class Friday, teachers led an activity called "Claim It," in which students were read various statements about their identity, and if the statement applied to a student's life, he or she stepped forward in a line, according to the "Claim It" activity materials provided by Fulton Public Schools.
The 100-statement activity, which has been referred to as a survey, includes more elementary statements like "You believe ghosts are real" and "You have never been on a plane." Other statements read "You have tried alcohol" and "Your parents are divorced."
The sensitive statements that have raised concerns include: "You or someone in your family has been raped or sexually assaulted," "You have ever been physically abused by someone who said they love you," "You worry or have worried about how your family will pay the bills," and "Someone in your family has been addicted to alcohol or drugs."
In an email sent to parents of middle school students on Friday, Superintendent Jacque Cowherd apologized for "any stress it has caused" children and their families. A release from Fulton Public Schools states the activity was a part of a school day focusing on character education, and is "aligned to the Missouri State Standards for health and is also a part of the Fulton Middle School health curriculum."
"The activity is designed to be welcoming and inclusive so students don't feel isolated and alone," the release states. "It is never the intent to make any student feel unwelcome or uncomfortable."
Cowherd said he was told the students could respond on a voluntary basis, but students may have felt obligated to participate.
"It was stressed to me at one point it was voluntary, but at the same token when you're dealing with young kids, they don't see that as voluntary," Cowherd said. "I'm not standing on any ground it was voluntary because the child was in a class, they probably assumed they had to do it."
April Bilyeu, whose daughter is a sixth-grade student, said the incident has caused stress in her home since Friday. Her daughter has had crying spells throughout the past few days, and expressed that she didn't want to return to school. She said her daughter was upset for her friends who stepped forward when teachers read more sensitive statements.
Bilyeu said her daughter told her that teachers asked the students not to talk about the activity outside of class.
"You know you're doing something wrong when you ask them not to discuss (the activity) outside of class," Bilyeu said.
When Bilyeu's daughter came home on Friday and talked about the activity, Bilyeu said she was in disbelief, thinking it was a misunderstanding.
"There's no way the teachers would ask you that. They can't ask you that," Bilyeu said she told her daughter.
Pam Hendrix also has a sixth-grade daughter who came home worried over "Claim It." She said her daughter told her that some students broke down crying during the activity and several went to the counselor's office afterward.
"It's more upsetting for (my daughter) because she saw some of her friends put in situations she didn't want to see," Hendrix said.
According to the materials provided by FPS, "Claim It encourages us to claim all of the many parts of our identities while also observing and respecting the many parts of the identities of others." An activity debriefing question is: What surprised you about what you have in common with others? About how you differ from others?
"To bring awareness - that's one thing, but that's not the way to do it," Hendrix said.
The activity continued after the first hour class, but Cowherd said certain statements were removed after children expressed their problems with it.
"I was told by the principal that some of the questions were removed after some students raised concerns," Cowherd said. "All of the kids may have participated in a generic survey, except questions other students were upset over."
Cowherd said Assistant Superintendent Suzanne Hull will be setting up interviews with teachers. He added investigations are typically conducted before an email is sent to parents so they can be informed of as many details as possible, but spring break has caused difficulties in reaching faculty.
Cowherd said he does not know the possible end results of the investigation because he could not speculate its potential findings. As stated in the email to parents, anyone with questions or concerns will be able to reach Cowherd at (573) 590-8000.