Maroon87
02-27-2009, 08:36 PM
By HELEN ERIKSEN
Copyright 2009 Houston Chronicle
Feb. 27, 2009
In a hastily arranged summit, Katy school district officials Friday called for unity to combat mounting outrage over a school newspaper commentary that many called “hurtful and elitist” for its take on school rivalries and turf.
Katy Supt. Alton Frailey convened the two-hour meeting that included high school principals, students and parent support group leaders from all the district high schools to address objections to the opinion piece “Cinco Territories,” printed Feb. 12 in the Cinco Ranch High School paper.
The two student writers, the principal and staff have apologized for the commentary, which they described as satire but it was not labeled as such. In the piece, the authors display resentment against non-Cinco Ranch students for coming onto their turf and clogging up lines at places such as Starbucks, Whataburger, Chick-Fil-A and other “hotspots” near the school.
While some in the school community have called the remarks trivial, others have said the backlash is a reflection of the larger issue of the widening class divide in the Katy Independent School District.
“Maybe folks are just venting and this will blow over if we leave it alone,” Frailey said. “Maybe this will mushroom and become even more problematic if we don’t address it head on.”
Students are quoted in the piece as saying such things as “We don’t feel safe eating in an environment contaminated and infested with other adolescents from different high schools, especially Taylor (Mustangs) kids. We feel like we’re dining in a barn with all those ponies.”
Frailey said he wants the community to work together on developing “a better sense of unity of purpose within our district”
The controversy also has triggered numerous hate emails, death threats against the authors, and pledges from rival schools that they will invade Cinco Ranch territory this weekend, district officials said.
There was a strong police presence Friday evening at the LaCenterra shopping center across the street from Cinco Ranch but no incidents were reported.
Students at the roundtable vowed to do their part in the healing process. They will take a message back to their home campuses of turning any demonstration into a show of district-wide unity.
“If we go there on Saturday and maintain our civility, this article has achieved its purpose in a roundabout way,” said Anirudh Ajith, student co-editor of the Cinco Ranch Cougar Line newspaper.
Copyright 2009 Houston Chronicle
Feb. 27, 2009
In a hastily arranged summit, Katy school district officials Friday called for unity to combat mounting outrage over a school newspaper commentary that many called “hurtful and elitist” for its take on school rivalries and turf.
Katy Supt. Alton Frailey convened the two-hour meeting that included high school principals, students and parent support group leaders from all the district high schools to address objections to the opinion piece “Cinco Territories,” printed Feb. 12 in the Cinco Ranch High School paper.
The two student writers, the principal and staff have apologized for the commentary, which they described as satire but it was not labeled as such. In the piece, the authors display resentment against non-Cinco Ranch students for coming onto their turf and clogging up lines at places such as Starbucks, Whataburger, Chick-Fil-A and other “hotspots” near the school.
While some in the school community have called the remarks trivial, others have said the backlash is a reflection of the larger issue of the widening class divide in the Katy Independent School District.
“Maybe folks are just venting and this will blow over if we leave it alone,” Frailey said. “Maybe this will mushroom and become even more problematic if we don’t address it head on.”
Students are quoted in the piece as saying such things as “We don’t feel safe eating in an environment contaminated and infested with other adolescents from different high schools, especially Taylor (Mustangs) kids. We feel like we’re dining in a barn with all those ponies.”
Frailey said he wants the community to work together on developing “a better sense of unity of purpose within our district”
The controversy also has triggered numerous hate emails, death threats against the authors, and pledges from rival schools that they will invade Cinco Ranch territory this weekend, district officials said.
There was a strong police presence Friday evening at the LaCenterra shopping center across the street from Cinco Ranch but no incidents were reported.
Students at the roundtable vowed to do their part in the healing process. They will take a message back to their home campuses of turning any demonstration into a show of district-wide unity.
“If we go there on Saturday and maintain our civility, this article has achieved its purpose in a roundabout way,” said Anirudh Ajith, student co-editor of the Cinco Ranch Cougar Line newspaper.