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Parent tells New Albany-Plain Local board her daughter was assaulted, urges strict enforcement of safety policy
Summary
A New Albany parent told the school board her sophomore daughter has been assaulted on and off campus since 2023 and asked the board to enforce its 0-tolerance policy, call for immediate separation and hold administrators accountable for alleged mishandling of complaints.
Kristen Harper told the New Albany-Plain Local Board of Education on Nov. 10 that her daughter, a sophomore at New Albany High School, has been assaulted twice on campus and once off campus since August 2023 and that criminal proceedings are underway.
Harper said a high-school assistant principal told her one of the incidents was linked to rumors about her daughter that were "*** based" and that school officials did not take corrective actions to stop the rumors or prevent further harm. She said an administrator—s tone became "dismissive and adversarial" as she advocated for her child and described that response as retaliation. "Our children's work deserve a learning environment that's free of fear, retaliation, and administrative neglect," Harper said, asking the board to "enforce a true 0 tolerance standard by ensuring immediate separation and safety enforcements for students that are involved in any incidents."
Superintendent Sawyers was present for public participation and the board heard Harper—s account in full. Harper said incident records exist and that she sent a letter to the board and the superintendent on Oct. 27 that had not elicited a satisfactory response. She requested that the board require decisive intervention, reinforce district expectations for safety and dignity, and hold administrators accountable for failing to act under district policy.
The board did not take formal action on Harper's request during the meeting; Harper's remarks were part of the public comment period. Board members did ask questions of staff at later points in the meeting about safety and procedures generally, but no vote or directive tied to Harper's specific requests was recorded in the minutes from this meeting.
Next steps: Harper asked the board to enforce safety and separation measures and to reassert the district—s 0-tolerance standard. The board has not announced a specific follow-up on her complaint in the meeting record; parents and concerned community members may expect staff to respond through established district processes.
