SPASH students walkout; some to mourn, some to protest
By Brandi Makuski
District leaders say about 200 students at SPASH left their classrooms at 10 a.m. on March 14, part of a National School Walkout designed to commemorate the victims of last month’s high school shooting in Florida.
Students were joined by several citizens from the community who attended in support of students. Several administrators were also present to supervise students, as well as about half a dozen officers from SPPD.
Students appeared to operate in two groups. About 70 students formed a circle separately, some embracing or holding hands, then returned to class immediately following a 17-minute moment of silence—one minute for each victim gunned down during the shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School on Valentine’s Day.
A second group of students remained for an additional 40 minutes to chant, and hear student speakers on multiple issues related to race, gun control, President Trump, and terrorism.
District officials say they found out about the planned protest after it was advertised online, at which point they began a dialouge with the SPASH Student Senate, and the students organizing the event.
“We weren’t going to prevent this from happening; that was never even thought of that—nothing good comes from that kind of confrontation,” said Superintendent Craig Gerlach. “Initially, my concern was having hundreds of kids go outside during our school day.”
Gerlach said the school had considered asking the students to use the SPASH Fieldhouse for their protest, but eventually allowed the walkout to occur in front of the main entrance. He said the district took no stance on any of the issues being protested, but wanted to ensure all students were safe during the event.
“The intent of why they were walking out, I think, got a little blurred,” Gerlach said. “This was designed to commemorate the 17 lives that were lost in Florida. That gesture of respect is heartwarming. As you can see, we wound up dealing with several issues; not just the Second Amendment, not just safety in schools. So it became more complicated.”
Student speakers claimed white students and staff can, at times, exhibit racist behavior, and some didn’t feel safe inside the school. Some of the students held signs reading, “Am I Next?” and, “If I Was White, I’d Get The Right!”
“As a minority surrounded by white people, I know my face is easy to pick out in a crowd if something goes down,” said Tamia Yates, a student at SPASH. “I don’t feel safe in this world, let alone this school.”
Another student, Maria Dade, also claimed students of color were being suspended or expelled from SPASH “just because they wanted to stand up for themselves,” but not provide examples.
“I don’t feel like there’s a very good relationship between the staff here and students of color,” Dade said. “This shouldn’t be happening.”
The extent of claims was a bit surprising to Gerlach, and to SPASH Principal Jon Vollendorf, who say while there’s always room for improvement, the district has come a long way in terms of social progress.
“But it clearly speaks to the presence of concerns that we need to address,” Vollendorf said. “One of the things we proactively do, but obviously need to do more directly and with a heightened sense of responsibility, is look at what our role is in facilitating that. You can’t just react.”
Vollendorf said the school plans to take a harder look at “systemic representation” for students of color in leadership roles, both in student groups and administratively, and whether or not the school has enough “safe spots” for nonwhite students to express themselves and relate to others.
Gerlach said gun control and racism are two issues that may never see compromise in society, but some of the most important discussions were missed entirely by the protesters.
“We’re addressing SPASH right now because of the walkout today,” he said. “But we have issues that we need to address with our elementary students; behavior issues, mental health issues—that’s where we need our resources. The people we need to address these issues, psychologists and whatnot, there’s a great shortage. Let’s not make this about guns—let’s make it about working with kids who have challenges and need help.”