POWHATAN COUNTY, Va. (WRIC) — Parents, teachers and students in Powhatan County finally got a chance to have their voices heard at a school board meeting on Monday night after it had to be rescheduled last week due to overcrowding.
Community members packed the Pocahontas Landmark Center on the night of Tuesday, March 12, hoping to talk to the Powhatan County School Board about how the school district is responding to alleged racism in schools.
So many people attended the meeting that it had to be shut down by the fire marshal and rescheduled to Monday, March 18. The Powhatan High School auditorium, which can hold more people, was chosen as the venue for the rescheduled meeting.
“I’ve been called the N word, monkey, slave,” said a Powhatan County 7th grader during the rescheduled meeting on Monday. “I’ve reported this every day and nothing’s changed.”
In February, a photo which allegedly shows a Powhatan High School student with a racial slur written on her arm circulated online. Speakers at the meeting said racism has long been a problem within the school district.
“My very first day of school, a boy asked me who I am and why am I here. Then later on, he told me we don’t want you to here,” said another Powhatan 7th grader. “Every single day, racial slurs are [used].”
One of the dozens of people who spoke at the meeting was a teacher at Powhatan High School, where the photo is alleged to have been taken.
“Just today, I have had to send out no less than three students from my own classroom because they think the N word is funny, and I am over it,” said the teacher.
In response to these stories, the Powhatan School Board said they’re going to work to make changes.
“We need to set up a workshop to discuss what next steps we need to [take], as far as policy and procedure enforcement,” said School Board members Jeanne Wade.
Powhatan Superintendent Beth Teigen, who sent an email to parents in early March acknowledging the photo, said the school district is determined to make a change.
“We are committed to doing this work, or committing to working with the board to make changes,” said Teigen. “We’re committed to working with our families and most importantly, we’re committed and look forward to though to work with our students.”
The students involved in the photo were reportedly disciplined, but it is still unclear exactly what the punishment was or what the school district’s policy is for handling racist incidents.
“At a minimum, the district’s policy should cover harassment based on race, color, national origin, sex and disability,” said Powhatan NAACP members Chiara Hoyt. “Because these types of harassment are forbidden by federal laws prohibiting discrimination by school districts receiving federal financial assistance.”
