Let’s state the most important things at the top of this editorial: It is never OK for schoolteachers to have sex with students. It is never OK for teachers to inappropriately touch students. It is never OK for teachers to make sexual comments, aloud or in writing, to students. It is never OK for teachers to send sexually explicit text messages and images to students. And it is never OK for teachers to use their power and authority to coerce students.
These statements may seem obvious, but they were behind Monday’s decision by hundreds of Hudson’s Bay High School students to walk out of class. The students were rightfully protesting after allegations came to light during their winter break that an English teacher at their school had been investigated and reprimanded years ago after allegedly having sex with a student in the band room, yet somehow kept his job. The allegations only came to light when the female student, now 27, reported to Vancouver police and Vancouver Public Schools that she was sexually victimized in 2013, when she was a 16-year-old student.
It was a long time ago — so long that the teacher, Shadbreon Gatson — will not face prosecution because laws in effect then limited how many years prosecutors could wait to file criminal charges. Gatson remains on leave from the school district, which, along with police, is investigating to see if there is a pattern of conduct that might result in new allegations. Also on voluntary leave are two school administrators who supervised Gatson in 2013.
Students, parents and community members are right to be concerned. “School should be a safe place to be,” said ninth-grader Alexis Kidwell. “We shouldn’t have to be afraid.”
“We send our kids to school to be safe. We expect them to be able to learn in a safe zone,” said K-Ce Poulson. Poulson’s daughter, senior Jessyka Malone, organized Monday’s walkout.
The district’s leadership seems to want that too. Superintendent Jeff Snell was quick to visit Hudson’s Bay on Monday morning, before the walkout. “I appreciate the frustration and concerns I heard,” Snell said in a written statement released by the district. “Students should be able to feel safe, and when the trust they place in their school is violated, we should all be angry.”
It’s worth noting that in 2013, Snell was employed by the Camas School District, and, during his previous service with Vancouver, didn’t work at Hudson’s Bay. Nor were any of the current Vancouver school board members serving in 2013.
So far, the district seems to have responded as swiftly and openly as possible. It has released public records surrounding the 2013 incident, and has hired an outside law firm to investigate the allegations and the way they were handled at the time. It seems likely that the report, when completed, will prompt the district’s leadership and school board to review and potentially revise its policies.
Vancouver police are continuing to investigate too, to see if there are any other cases that should be brought forward. In addition to the 2013 case, Gatson in 2017 received a disciplinary letter citing unprofessional behavior and failure to maintain employee-student boundaries with two different female students.
Allegations that a teacher used his coercive power to foster an inappropriate relationship with a student are disturbing and, if true, disgusting. In this case, it may take some time to understand the scope of what happened. But so far, the reactions by students, parents and school leaders seem appropriate.
