Longview parents demand accountability as superintendent pledges outside review after Mark Morris allegations

Longview School District Superintendent Dr. Feininger told the board on Feb. 9 that the district is treating recent allegations involving students at Mark Morris High School with utmost seriousness and is cooperating with an ongoing law-enforcement investigation. "When families are worried about their children's safety, nothing else feels more important," Dr. Feininger said, and the district has engaged an outside investigator to review athletic supervision, reporting processes and expectations for adult supervision.

Board president Don Wojtala echoed the superintendent's comments, acknowledging community frustration and saying the board is "committed to learning from this moment and strengthening our system and our processes." Wojtala noted legal limits on public disclosure during active criminal investigations.

Hours of public comment followed. Parents and community members described reports they said were treated as "rumors" by school staff, questioned the timing and content of a Feb. 7 letter from the Mark Morris principal, and demanded immediate accountability. "We need to have accountability for those actions because you guys do not protect our children," said Ashley King, who said she reported a concerning incident on Feb. 6 and questioned whether suspensions were adequate.

Several speakers urged the board to place district employees on administrative leave, commission an independent external investigation of the district's culture and reporting pathways over the past five years, and provide a transparent timeline of when disclosures were received and why reporting to law enforcement was delayed. Sean Turpin, joining by Zoom, called the pattern "a pattern of delayed action, a pattern of minimization and a pattern of protecting systems and staff instead of students," and urged the board to formally evaluate the superintendent's performance.

Multiple callers said the principal's Feb. 7 message to families downplayed allegations and that mandated reporters did not notify law enforcement in a timely way. One Zoom commenter (speaker 25) said the allegations later resulted in the arrest of two students on charges described in the transcript as "second degree" sexual offenses and unlawful imprisonment; that commenter urged immediate administrative leave for the principal and other key employees. The board and superintendent repeatedly emphasized that student privacy and the active criminal investigation limit what they can share publicly.

Dr. Feininger described immediate district steps: ensuring counseling and support services are available to students, improving reporting pathways between buildings and the district office, and creating a dedicated webpage for updates and instructions for reporting concerns. The superintendent said a separate outside investigator will review district practices after law enforcement completes its work so findings can inform next steps.

The meeting closed the public-comment period after more than two dozen speakers delivered testimony, ranging from personal allegations of past mishandling to calls for resignations and procedural reforms. The board announced it will proceed with follow-up steps, including the outside review described by the superintendent and further internal procedure work, while the criminal investigation continues.