Roanoke County School Board faces backlash | #childpredator | #kidsaftey | #childsaftey

Several of the speakers – some employed by the school system – also spoke about the division’s handling of the removal of rainbows and other symbols at Glen Cove deemed to show support for LGBTQ+ students and employees.

Northside High School biology teacher Ashley Hendrix said she fully supports the Glen Cove employees.

“As a proud member of the LGBT community, I am appalled and disgusted by the slander and remarks that have been said against our community, and I am also appalled by the silence of the school board who claims to be in support of all students and staff in Roanoke County,” Hendrix said.

Damon Gettier – father of a student at the school who made the original complaint about the symbols – broached the issue during the public comments section of the May 18 school board meeting.

Gettier said he became aware of rainbows in some classrooms in mid-April, while conversing with his son and another student.

“What I’m here to talk about is the child abuse, grooming, conditioning and indoctrination by sexual predators disguised as teachers and staff at Glen Cove Elementary,” he said at the May 18 school board meeting.

While Gettier did not mention staff by name, he named jobs that only have one person in those roles at the school.

“It became apparent that the guidance counselor, the school psychologist, the assistant principal and the music teacher were bent on indoctrinating our children on LGBTQA and not on reading, writing and arithmetic,” Gettier said.

Gettier distributed to school board members four photos he said were from this year’s Glen Cove yearbook. Three depicted teachers wearing rainbow-style clothing, jewelry or accessories. The fourth was a rainbow-colored sign declaring “EVERYONE WELCOME.”

“That is the yearbook that is being published, it was published and given out to children this year,” Gettier said in May. “Who would approve that? Who thought those pictures were appropriate?”

A protest at Glen Cove Elementary in May that included more than 200 people was held to protest Gettier’s comments and what some believe was the board’s lack of response.

Other people who spoke at Thursday’s meeting said the school board allowing Gettier to go after particular employees unfettered made the board complicit, and said their silence was akin to supporting his words.

“I do believe right is right, wrong is wrong. Defaming others with vile baseless accusations is wrong. Providing that designation and allowing it to sit unchallenged is wrong,” parent Jon Hutchens said Thursday night. “Shunning children and treating them with cruelty to their most vulnerable moments is wrong. Showing children kindness and mercy is right.”

Student Ravenne Weddle said ignoring LGBTQ+ students is not going to make them go away.

“Maybe if we bothered to teach this in sexual education or at home in a safe place, it wouldn’t seem so offensive and inappropriate when it comes up for the first time in your child’s classroom … I shouldn’t have had to hide to be deserving of love and support. Supporting students is not indoctrination, but choosing to be ignorant and shielding children from learning about these very real topics is indoctrinating them to be normal, giving them no opportunity to be different from how you want them to be,” Weddle told the board.

Others expressed similar concern for pretending LGBTQ+ students don’t exist in schools, and said it can cause harm to students who are already at a higher risk for bully and suicide.

Roanoke County resident Decca Knight said she is a mental health professional and is worried about the county’s school system.

“I’m very concerned about the events that have transpired at Glen Cove Elementary and throughout the district over the past school year. I have recently become aware that the events that happened [at Glen Cove] are just part of a larger movement to restrict any LGBTQ plus discussions and awareness throughout the division … The Trevor Project found that LGBTQ+ youth are four times as likely to attempt suicide as their peers. In fact, having one accepting adult can lower the risk of suicide by 40%. LGBTQ+ youth are also more likely than non LGBTQ+ youth to experience violence at school and have lower levels of school connectedness,” she told the board.

School board Chairman Brent Hudson did not respond to an email last month about why he allowed Gettier to call out specific staff members or why he allowed him to call them sexual predators and groomers.

Hudson and board member David Linden did not address the audience during board comments either, though board members Tim Greenway and Mike Wray thanked those in attendance for speaking.

Wray was the only board member to speak to those in attendance. He thanked Weddle for being brave and speaking to the board.

When Hudson was asked if he had time to answer a few questions after the meeting, he responded “no, I don’t.”