Hurt, betrayal: Hudson’s Bay students plan walkout in wake of accusations against teacher

However, prosecutors dropped the case Dec. 26 due to the statute of limitations expiring. Gatson currently is not facing any criminal charges.

According to court records, in June 2013, a Hudson’s Bay custodian told the school’s principal, William Oman, and assistant principal, Valerie Seeley, that he interrupted Gatson and the 16-year-old student engaging in sexual intercourse in a band room after hours. Court records say the custodian’s report spurred an administrative investigation and was documented in a disciplinary letter in Gatson’s personnel file, along with other accusations of misconduct with female students between 2009 and 2017.

“We found out later that our principal, who was the vice principal at the time, knew about it, and that enraged a lot of students at our school. We then didn’t know who we could trust,” said Jessyka Malone, a Hudson’s Bay senior who’s organizing Monday’s walkout.

“We thought … we should go to the district office because the person who was the principal at the time now works at the district office,” she said.

A district spokeswoman did not respond by The Columbian’s print deadline Friday to inquiries about whether Oman or Seeley reported the 2013 allegations to Child Protective Services, law enforcement or the Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction, or whether they’re under investigation for their handling of the allegations.

District investigating

Malone, who did not have Gatson as a teacher, said she and her friends had no idea that he was on leave until the district notified parents of his arrest.

The district placed Gatson on administrative leave in November in connection with a law enforcement investigation into allegations of inappropriate behavior, according to a letter sent to parents by Seeley and district Superintendent Jeff Snell.

“We certainly understand and share our community’s concern about these allegations and the new information that has been brought forward. We also understand that recent events have damaged the trust our students and their parents place in us,” district spokeswoman Jessica Roberts said in an email Thursday.

“We hope our community understands that even though the criminal legal charge against this staff member was dropped due to the statute of limitations, our investigation into these allegations and determining appropriate next steps are ongoing.”

The district said Gatson will remain on administrative leave as it continues to investigate.

Vancouver Public Schools hired a third-party investigator to evaluate the evidence, provide recommendations for next steps and review the district’s own investigative procedures, Roberts said.

“A thorough and well-researched investigation does take time. We hope our community will understand and have patience so we can come to fair and just conclusions,” she said.

The Vancouver school board called an emergency executive session to begin at 1:30 p.m. Friday to discuss the performance of a public employee. Executive sessions are not open to the public or media. Which employee board members were discussing was not disclosed.

Demanding change

On Christmas Eve, Malone, 17, couldn’t sleep, she said. Instead, she wrote emails to the Clark County Courthouse, Vancouver Police Department and news outlets, including The Columbian, making them aware of the planned school walkout and peaceful protest. She then posted about it on Instagram, where it reached a wider audience.

“I was awake at 3 in the morning just thinking that we needed to do something to get our voices heard,” she said.

Her mother, K-Ce Poulson, said she’ll be standing right beside her daughter Monday.

“We send our kids to school to be safe. We expect them to be able to learn in a safe zone,” Poulson said.

Another Hudson’s Bay senior, Morgan Brink, said she’s going to participate in the walkout. She said that she feels on edge going back to school Monday because she doesn’t know whom to trust.

“I’m hoping that the adults who are involved with everything get held accountable,” said Brink, 18. “Something my parents teach me is practice what you preach, and clearly they have not been practicing what they preach about keeping us safe.”

A spokeswoman for Child Protective Services would not confirm whether the district or school administrators reported the 2013 incident, citing confidentiality laws, but said CPS refers reports involving teachers to the Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction and law enforcement. A Vancouver police spokeswoman previously said there are no police reports involving Gatson before 2024.

An OSPI spokeswoman said Thursday that the Office of Professional Practices opened an investigation into Gatson on Dec. 19 — the day before he was arrested — and there is no prior record of complaints against him.

Pending police investigations

Since Gatson’s arrest, a number of people have come forward with allegations, both Vancouver police spokeswoman Acting Cmdr. Kathy McNicholas and Senior Deputy Prosecutor Laurel Smith said.

Smith said in an interview last week that she plans to follow up with law enforcement once police finish investigating.

McNicholas said police are still interviewing potential victims.

McNicholas also confirmed that once the news broke of Gatson’s arrest, a Hudson’s Bay alumna contacted the Vancouver Police Department about her experiences with Gatson in 2011. The department’s major crimes unit is following up, McNicholas said.