Students, coaches and parents urge board to save girls soccer; parents demand independent review of alleged sexual-assault handling

Students, coaches and parents packed the public-comment period on May 13 to press the J O Combs Unified School District governing board to preserve extracurriculars and to demand accountability in a reported student-safety case.

Multiple speakers described the personal impact of team membership and the harm that would follow program eliminations. "I do not think it is right for you guys to cut out the girls soccer program," student Kendall Barup said. Parents and the head coach said they learned of the proposed elimination late and asked the board to consider alternatives such as suspending programs for a year or increasing recruitment efforts before making cuts.

Shelby Decker, the girls head soccer coach at Combmes High School, said she was "disappointed to find out about this matter. I found out from one of my players today. As the head coach I was not notified that my program was even up for debate." Decker and other speakers asked the board to consult coaches and families before finalizing any eliminations.

In a separate and strongly worded thread of comments, multiple members of the public alleged the district mishandled a reported sexual-assault incident involving a student with disabilities. "Police should have been contacted immediately," said Diane Stewart Inglehart, a clinical social worker and longtime educator, who described what she and other commenters characterized as delays in mandated reporting and an inappropriate internal response. Other speakers said forensic investigators later brought charges (a county attorney declined prosecution) and said the district's written characterization of the incident minimized the allegations.

The board did not take public-action on the safety allegations during the open-comment period; it later convened an executive session on personnel and litigation items. Community members at the meeting urged the district to authorize a truly independent third-party investigation and to consider administrative leave for employees involved while the review proceeds.

What happens next: at the end of the budget discussion the board asked staff to return in June with alternatives for the extracurricular stipend schedule and more data on participation and fees. The safety-allegations speakers asked the board to authorize an independent investigation; the board moved to an executive session at the meeting's close for legal consultation and personnel-related discussion, which the board cited as ARS grounds for nonpublic deliberation.

Reporting note: the assertions recorded here were made by public commenters during the meeting; the transcript contains allegations and descriptions of investigative steps that members of the public and outside investigators referenced. The district's formal response, personnel actions or findings would be matters for subsequent public records and board action.