Last Friday we told you about a male cheerleader at Alice High School in South Texas who said he’d been kicked off the squad — and suspended from school — for kissing another male student. The 17-year-old cheerleader said the kiss was caught on a school surveillance camera, and he claimed officials had targeted him because of his sexual orientation.
This afternoon, the Alice Independent School District released a statement saying the student’s removal from the cheerleading squad will remain in effect. The district said the student wasn’t removed from the squad for kissing another student. However, citing privacy concerns, the district says it cannot elaborate on the reason for his removal. Here’s the full text of the statement sent via email to Instant Tea (view the PDF here):
The Alice I.S.D. has recently reviewed the recent removal of a student from the Alice High School Cheerleading Squad. After reviewing the Alice I.S.D. Student Code of Conduct and the Cheer Program Handbook, the removal will stay in effect. The student’s parents are in agreement with the district’s decision. The student code of conduct and cheer handbook are designed to improve conduct and encourage students to adhere to their responsibilities as members of the school community. The student and parents are clearly aware that the student was not removed from the squad for kissing another student at school. While the student is free to discuss certain aspects of his discipline in the media, the District cannot discuss the specifics of this incident and must respect the privacy rights of the students involved in this matter.
The district’s statement today is similar to one released by the school principal late Friday, according to KRISTV.com:
In a written statement given to Six News, Principal Lucy Munoz stated “the district does not suspend students for kissing other students at school, regardless of the gender of the student.” However, the statement did not list a specific reason for the student’s suspension. The statement went on to say that the district is still reviewing the matter, but added that the “Cheer Program Handbook requires students to adhere to a higher standard of conduct than that which applies to the general student population.”
Something just isn’t right about this. What about the other guy? Did he get suspended? I find it odd that the cheerleader would go on TV and try to remain private about it. I feel this sends the wrong message to kids struggling with their orientation.
I’m actually from this town and can tell you the full story is not being made public due to the fact that the boy is a minor and currently enrolled in high school. They did not suspend him because he was caught kissing a boy. He was suspended for performing a sexual act on the other student. Get it? The school administrators cannot go around publicizing this to the world. The boy in turn went running to local media outlets crying wolf and as a consequence is giving Alice High School a very bad name. The child knows he did wrong and is trying to put a spin on the story because he knows very well the school district cannot defend themselves and really say what happened. I just thought before the entire world reads this story and forms assumptions of this “small Texas town,” they should actually know the truth. The boy should have never gone around gaining support for something he knows was wrong, regardless of sexual orientation. If this was a boy/girl or girl/girl combination, the children in question would have still been suspended for performing these acts at school.
Tara, you are full of crap….and just as back woods as the rest of that town. A kiss is just that, a kiss….IT IS NOT A SEXUAL ACT!!!!! I am in agreement with John, something is not right with this. “Cheer Program Handbook requires students to adhere to a higher standard of conduct than that which applies to the general student population.” If it were two girl cheerleaders, I bet nothing would happen to them!!!!
Maybe it was about the part of the other boy’s anatomy he kissed….
Gary,
Read between the lines genius. It was NOT just a kiss. He was performing oral sex. This obviously is against school rules. Boy with boy, girl with girl, or boy with girl, any student caught having having kind of sex must face being disciplined, which includes suspension. The problem with this article and the story is that ignorant people who jump to conclusions do not know the full story.
Tara – before you start calling us ignorant, you might wanna realize that any conclusions that were jumped to were because of what was being reported – and mind you, the story did NOT break on this media outlet, it was merely repeated, so “this story” is also beyond your grasp. I highly doubt that you “know” the whole story, and are merely repeating gossip that you’re hearing around your town – and your comment about him being a minor…the age of consent in Texas is 17, so it has nothing to do with him being a minor – you are right however that the school cannot disclose full information due to privacy, and their own policies. Furthermore, who the hell cares if he was sucking someone off on school grounds, I’m sure its not the first time someone has done it, he just happened to get caught – and I’d like to see their policies on their surveilence cameras – and exactly what they can and can’t use them to prove. and as others have mentioned – what about the other student? was he disciplined? all the released statements refer to a student – singular, not plural – and I dont’ see them releasing a statement for each. and the last time I checked – it takes a dick, and a mouth to accomplish what they were doing.
Wow. It is amazing how this entire story started with exchanging a kiss, but has now developed into a full fledged debate about what may or may not have really happened. Let it go, people. *IF* the kid is a minor and *IF* the parents agree with the action of the principal, then the kid has no say in the matter. Minors are under parental control until they reach majority (in Texas that means age 18), with very few exceptions. What might or might not have happened, or whether or not the school principal made the correct decision is irrelevant. And besides, no one wants their dirty laundry aired in public, regardless of how it got dirty to begin with.
Tara —
You are stating not fact, but rumor — something you heard about, not something that is verifiable. Taken the case as presented, I do not give much credibility to your rumor. The reason is this: The school emphasized that “higher standards” are being applied because he is a cheerleader. These are “higher standards” than the general population. Oral sex would be a suspendable offense if you were a general student; no need for a higher standard to be applied. Therefore, it is unlikely that oral sex is at play here (as it were). There may have been something beyond kissing but of a lesser “offense” than oral sex, possibly a friendly squeeze of some sort — a more assertive sign of affection that the general population may not be suspended for but a cheerleader might. And then again, the student might have gotten busted for an entirely different behavioral problem such as missing class that was co-incident with the kissing. Who knows? Well, the family and the school knows. The family isn’t talking and the school can’t.
Oral sex, though, is pure rumor mongering and contradicts the statements. But I do agree the school (given the statements are accurate) is getting a bad rap here.
I Thought these children today know better? Sex after School …before your parents get home…