Hundreds of Hudson’s Bay High School students walked out of class Monday morning to protest the school district’s handling of 2013 sex allegations against a teacher.
“School should be a safe place to be,” ninth-grader Alexis Kidwell said. “We shouldn’t have to be afraid.”
Jessyka Malone, a Bay senior, said she came up with the idea to walk out on the first day of school after winter break to “be heard.” She and other students question why the teacher wasn’t removed from the classroom long ago.
On Dec. 20, Vancouver police arrested English teacher Shadbreon Gatson, 43, on suspicion of first-degree sexual misconduct with a minor, stemming from incidents alleged to have happened in 2013. However, prosecutors dropped the case Dec. 26 due to the statute of limitations expiring. Gatson currently is not facing any criminal charges, although the school district has hired a law firm to investigate the allegations and the way they were handled.
“There was a little time there where we thought it was only going to be just a couple of us,” Malone said leading the group down Fourth Plain Boulevard. “Seeing everybody it makes us happy that we could make our school come together.”
Students carried signs and trekked about 2 miles from the school, 1601 E. McLoughlin Blvd., to Vancouver Public Schools’ district office at the Jim Parsley Administrative Center, 2901 Falk Road.
“I’m here to support the potential victims and our school,” 17-year-old senior Nova Benson said.
Another student carried a sign that read: “Your inaction is our outrage!!”
About 10 Vancouver police liaisons guided the group along the route and out of traffic, using law enforcement cars to block side streets so the crowd didn’t have to stop for crosswalks.
Acting Lt. Christopher Simmons said Vancouver police provided officers to walk with the students because they were concerned about past pedestrian fatalities on Fourth Plain.
Parents and Bay grads parked at different points along the route. They held signs and cheered for the students while cars drove by honking.
One Subaru had writing on its windows — “We support you Bay students” — as it honked all the way down Fourth Plain.
Other supporters parked by the district office and awaited the crowd. Someone had snacks and water waiting for the students.
The students arrived at the district office about 11:40 a.m. As soon as the crowd settled by the administrative office’s front doors, a chant began: “Keep us safe! Keep us safe!”
District spokeswoman Jessica Roberts said in an email that Superintendent Jeff Snell visited Bay at the start of the walk.
“I appreciate the frustration and concerns I heard,” Snell said in a written statement. “Students should be able to feel safe, and when the trust they place in their school is violated, we should all be angry.”
He took over as superintendent in 2021 following Steve Webb’s retirement after 13 years at the helm. Webb was recently hired as interim superintendent in Oregon’s St. Helens School District to deal with the fallout of a sex abuse scandal.
According to court records, in June 2013, a Bay custodian interrupted Gatson and a 16-year-old student engaging in sexual intercourse in a band room after hours. The custodian told then-Principal William Oman and Assistant Principal Valerie Seeley.
Both Oman (now an administrator in the district office) and Seeley (now Bay’s principal) volunteered to go on leave during the district’s ongoing investigation.
Gatson received a “letter of admonishment” in June 2013 from Oman for “poor judgment and boundaries with a female student,” according to documents obtained by The Columbian from the district under the state’s Public Records Act.
The records also include a 2017 disciplinary letter to Gatson from then-Associate Principal Joseph Accuradi-Gillam, citing unprofessional behavior and failure to maintain employee-student boundaries after having two female students in his classroom who weren’t on his roster.
The district placed Gatson on administrative leave in November in connection with a law enforcement investigation into allegations of inappropriate behavior, according to a Dec. 20 letter sent to parents by Seeley and Snell.
Gatson will remain on administrative leave as the investigation continues, and an interim principal stepped into Seeley’s position at Bay on Monday, according to a letter Snell and school board President Kathy Decker sent to Bay parents and staff Saturday.
Since Gatson’s arrest, a number of people have come forward with allegations, and Vancouver police are interviewing them, Acting Cmdr. Kathy McNicholas said.
In the meantime, the students say they hope Monday’s protest will bring change and awareness at Bay and the district office.
“I just want to make sure these kids feel like there are adults in their life that they can trust and want to keep them safe,” said Stevi Green, a parent of three Bay students. Her sister also attended the school in 2013.
Sabrina Sheehy, a mental health therapist and Vancouver Public Schools parent, joined the students at the district office.
“I work with victims, and so it’s really important to me that people understand that when things like this go unchecked, lots and lots of harm happens,” she said. “(Students) will need a place to be listened to and having the adults in their lives supporting them and asking, ‘How can I support you?’ ”
Students, parents and alums took turns using a megaphone.
One student said, “don’t be afraid to speak out.” Green also took the megaphone and encouraged students to go to the school board meetings.
“Our school, our safety,” the crowd chanted as the protest concluded and students returned to the school.
