OCONTO FALLS, WI (WTAQ-WLUK) — A group of Oconto Falls High School students held a walkout Thursday morning to support students recently suspended for a homecoming prank.
They also voiced concerns about an ongoing lawsuit. It alleges the district didn’t respond appropriately to reports of staff members assaulting and grooming students.
The protest of about 20 students might have looked like they were showing support for their favorite yellow fruit, but it was actually a call to action to district leaders.
“I think a walkout is really the most effective way you can get attention from anyone,” said Emmalynn Stankevitz, a sophomore.
As first reported earlier this week, four students dressed as bananas ran onto the football field last Friday during a break in the game. They were suspended from school for three days.
“Yes, they should have gotten punished because it’s against the WIAA rules, but they went far too above and beyond,” said Christopher Mucha, an Oconto Falls senior.
Specifically, the protesters believe the district intentionally humiliated the students by pulling them out during the homecoming dance and involving the police.
“That could have been a school issue,” said Mucha.
The students believe the school should be more worried about the impact of an ongoing federal lawsuit.
Seven plaintiffs claim the district didn’t do enough when students reported predatory behavior, naming 12 staff members in allegations that span 35 years.
One staff member named in the suit was sentenced to two years in prison for assaulting a student. Another is charged with 11 felonies.
“I, myself, and many other like middle schoolers and high schoolers have spoken about how they feel awkward in certain teacher’s classrooms or about how they’re scared to go into the locker room to get changed,” said Stankevitz.
The school board has asked for the lawsuit to be dismissed, noting “teachers who engage in sexual misconduct should face consequences.” However, the board argued the district doesn’t have “financial liability for the nefarious misconduct of a few bad employees.”
A previous district statement encourages future concerns to be brought to the district or law enforcement as soon as possible. The district said it “continues efforts to provide a safe and nurturing educational environment for all of its students.”
