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Community raises allegations about Mark Morris High School and presses board for accountability
Summary
During public comment, several speakers alleged that sexual assaults occurred in Mark Morris High School locker rooms, said mandated-reporting requirements may not have been followed, and urged the board to place implicated staff on administrative leave and to pursue public accountability; the board took no immediate action.
Multiple community members used the public-comment period at the May 11 Long View School Board meeting to make urgent allegations about past student sexual assaults at Mark Morris High School and to urge the board to take immediate oversight actions.
Rebecca Beck, who identified herself as a parent, said the incidents go beyond hazing and described reports she characterized as rape occurring in a varsity basketball locker room that she said "has been going on for years." Beck alleged that trusted adults and district officials failed to report or act on students’ disclosures and cited mandatory-reporting law (RCW 26.44.030) as a standard she believes was not followed.
Other commenters called for immediate accountability, including placing administrators who knew of allegations on administrative leave and asking the board to place the superintendent and relevant leaders on leave while investigations continue. Sean Turpin criticized the board for extending the superintendent’s contract and described inconsistent past responses to misconduct allegations across employees.
Speakers said they had examined public records and called for transparent timelines of who knew what and when. Several speakers asked the board to add the matter as a clear agenda item for the next meeting and to provide specifics on investigative steps and consequences. The board closed public comment at the end of the period and adjourned; the transcript records no board action on these requests during the meeting.
The transcript records strong emotion and repeated calls for oversight, but it does not contain investigative findings, police reports, or a recorded board response beyond statements that the public-comment period was being observed.
