Parents and students allege bullying by Venus High cheer sponsor; board hears public comment

Multiple parents and students told the Venus ISD Board of Trustees during the meeting’s public comment period that they believe a high‑school cheer sponsor repeatedly mistreated cheerleaders and that district administrators failed to resolve complaints.

At the podium a parent described a cluster of events she said had affected her daughter’s senior year, including an invoice the family received on May 1 for allegedly missing cheer items and what the parent called “retaliation” when the principal and sponsor restricted students’ participation in senior‑week activities. The parent said teachers later intervened and students were allowed to attend senior week but that the principal had told families diplomas could be withheld until invoices were paid. The parent added that the sponsor had posted on social media in ways she characterized as “uncalled for behavior.”

Student London Ramirez, identified as a senior at Venus High School, said she quit the cheer team in January and described receiving an invoice weeks later for items she said she never signed out. Ramirez said she had been a four‑year varsity athlete and that her diploma and participation in senior events were threatened without prior notice from administration. “It was also told to me by someone that works for Venus ISD that she was pushing for me not to be in senior week,” Ramirez told the board.

Another senior, Chastity Simon, told trustees she had raised concerns with the principal in September after “an outlash” by the sponsor and later quit the team after a competition where, she said, the sponsor failed to follow rules. Simon said invoices were sent via a Canva document rather than itemized receipts from the vendor and that she had not been notified directly by administrators that her diploma or transcripts might be withheld. “I would have liked to know that this could have put me in potential of something that I did not have,” Simon said.

Community member Natalie Phelps, who identified herself as a parent and a member of the Venus ISD community, said she had collected feedback from dozens of families and staff across the district and called for “accountability, transparency, and action.” Phelps referenced broader concerns she said parents have raised about bullying, maintenance and food service issues, and staff retention, and said, “We will continue to show up. We will continue to speak out and we hope you will finally begin to listen.”

The speakers addressed the board during the agenda’s public comment portion. No trustee motion, disciplinary action, or administrative decision regarding the allegations was recorded in the meeting minutes or on the public record during the same meeting. Board policy on public comment and speaker time limits was read aloud at the start of the public comment period.

Trustees did not announce any immediate investigatory outcome or next steps for the specific allegations during the meeting. The transcript records the presentations and the speakers’ requests that district leaders and the board look into the incidents and improve communication with families.

The board’s formal agenda proceeded after public comment; no on‑the‑record vote related to discipline, personnel action, or policy change on the cheer sponsor issue is shown in the meeting record provided.