Over 100 Ooltewah High School graduates, saying they are saddened and outraged by the alleged rape of a 15-year-old basketball player by three teammates, are calling for a full independent investigation.
Dr. Regina Baucom said the alumni also want current OHS students educated about rape, sexual assault and bullying and those responsible be held accountable.
She said, "I hope it is apparent that many graduates far afield and close to home are watching this case very closely, and we ask that you address this incident head-on and as transparently as possible within the confines of the law."
The alumni sent this letter:
Dear Hamilton County Schools Superintendent Rick Smith, Assistant Superintendent Lee McDade, Ooltewah High School Principal Jim Jarvis, and members of the Hamilton County School Board,
It is with both sadness and outrage that we, the undersigned alums of Ooltewah High School, have read about the rape and sexual assault of a 15 year old Ooltewah High freshman on a recent school sponsored sporting event in Gatlinburg, TN.
We echo Hamilton County Board of Education Chairman Jonathan Welch in saying that this is a horrific incident. Here, we pose to you the same question that School Board member Rhonda Thurman recently asked: “How have we gotten to this point?”
We want to know why these children were left in harm’s way, especially if bullying by the perpetrators was reported prior to the sexual assault? How can the atmosphere on a high school sports team be so toxic as to lead to a potentially life-threatening sexual assault? Our concerns are not only for the victim but also for all of the current and previous students of Ooltewah schools. Are these children learning about sexual violence prevention? If not, how can we be assured that students, both male and female, are safe from rape and sexual assault? Are members of the school board, teachers and coaches willing to stop such violence and hold perpetrators accountable?
While we understand that criminal charges have been filed by Gatlinburg police, we specifically call for the Superintendent and School Board to do the following: first, perform a review of this incident using an outside auditor or detective to determine how this happened and prevent such violence to occur in the future; second, hold those responsible accountable; and third, educate the students of Ooltewah about rape, sexual assault, and bullying -- how to identify it, how to stop it, and most importantly, how to get help if they have been the victim of such crimes.
As alums of Ooltewah High we depend on you to create the right atmosphere for students. Instead of burying this incident of rape and assault, we ask that you address it head-on and as transparently as possible within the confines of the law.
Sincerely,
Regina S Baucom, Ph.D., Ooltewah High School class of 1995
Therese Hamn Parker, Ooltewah High School class of 1995
Wendy Burchfield, Ooltewah High School class of 1995
Eve Osborne, Ooltewah High School class of 1995
Marvette Denson, Ooltewah High School class of 1995
James C. Mosley, III, MD, Ooltewah High School class of 1995
Brandon Buckner, Ooltewah High School class of 1993
Mandy Lawson Hatfield, Ooltewah High School class of 1995
April Barnhart Barbee, Ooltewah High School class of 1995
Angela Rose, Ooltewah High School class of 1995
Debra Palmiter Morgan Keeney, Ooltewah High School class of 1995
Meredith Nall Ownby, Ooltewah High School class of 1995
Dana Ellison Barka, Ooltewah High School class of 1995
Kim Mathis Ford, Ooltewah High School class of 1995
Sharon R Johnson, Ooltewah High School class of 1995
Bekah Pollack, Ooltewah High School class of 1995
Virginia Ellis Wilson, Ooltewah High School class of 1995
Tamara Westmoreland McCoy, Ooltewah High School class of 1995
Page Freeman Ratcliff, Ooltewah High School class of 1995
Jennifer Harris Guider, Ooltewah High School class of 1991
Bonnie Cofield Brown, Ooltewah High School class of 1995
Kip Brown, Ooltewah High School class of 1993
Sandi Byrd, Ooltewah High School class of 1995
Kacey Brown, Ooltewah High School class of 1995
John Arthur Spalding, Ooltewah High School class of 1995
Amanda DeFriese, Ooltewah High School class of 1995
Callie Blaylock, Ooltewah High School class of 1995
Malanna Arp Massey, Ooltewah High School class of 1995
Crissy Hubbs, Ooltewah High School class of 1990
Jenny Poole Havron-Miller, Ooltewah High School class of 1995
Gina Cross Cooper, Ooltewah High School class of 1995
Brittany Ledford Morris, Ooltewah High School class of 1995
Peter Evan Brown, Ooltewah High School class of 1998
Tonya Ricketts, Ooltewah High School class of 1995
Jason Coots, Ooltewah High School class of 1995
Tammy Hughes Clowers, Ooltewah High School class of 1984
Steve Moore, Ooltewah High School class of 2000
Allyson Sims Abbott, Ooltewah High School class of 1995
Gretchen Warner Allen, Ooltewah High School class of 1995
Peggy Humphreys, Ooltewah High School class of 1963
Tiffany Jeffers Taylor, Ooltewah High School class of 1998
Sean Jones, Ooltewah High School class of 2003
Andi Gross, Ooltewah High School class of 1989
Delissa Strickland-Marshall, Ooltewah High School class of 1995
Marcy Colleen Wilson Purcell, Ooltewah High School class of 1989
Jaime Denton Bingham, Ooltewah High School class of 1995
Demarland Dean, Ooltewah High School class of 1986
Sonja Gilley, Ooltewah High School class of 1993
Leanna Wiggins, Ooltewah High School class of 2000
Linda Nickolson Atterton, Ooltewah High School class of 1973
William S. Powell, Ooltewah High School class of 1990
Juanita Pastrana Sholtz, Ooltewah High School class of 1995
Athena Brewer Nascimento, Ooltewah High School class of 1993
Dana Holmes Woodling, Ooltewah High School class of 1995
Kathy R Hill, Ooltewah High School class of 1994
Alicia Blevins, Ooltewah High School class of 2006
Teresa Parker Weddle, Ooltewah High School class of 1986
Tammy Akins Goforth, Ooltewah High School class of 1991
John Hale, Ooltewah High School class of 1995
Melissa Gallagher Montgomery, Ooltewah High School class of 1989
Stacy Hughes Britt, Ooltewah High School class of 1993
Stuart Cooper, MBA, Ooltewah High School class of 1995
Jaime Bak Gibson, Ooltewah High School class of 1995
Celestial Jackson Allen, Ooltewah High School class of 1990
Donna Bowers, Ooltewah High School class of 1980
Gary Bowers, Ooltewah High School class of 1978
Nicole Warner Rhodes, Ooltewah High School class of 1997
Linda Sanders, Ooltewah High School class of 1979
Amanda Cook Whitaker, Ooltewah High School class of 1997
Emily Hagan, Ooltewah High School class of 1995
Shonda Witherow, Ooltewah High School class of 1995
Jeffery Viar, Ooltewah High School class of 1995
Michael Taylor, Ooltewah High School class of 1995
Michael L. Sheppard, Ooltewah High School class of 1989
Shirley Plott, Ooltewah High School class of 1973
Sherry Souza, Ooltewah High School class of 1983
Beth Parson, Ooltewah High School class of 1963
Tim Duggard, Ooltewah High School class of 1995
Sandy Gilbert Dorn, Ooltewah High School class of 1990
Jason Young, Ooltewah High School class of 1992
Tiffany Birchfield, Ooltewah High School class of 1995
Lawrence Shull, Ooltewah High School class of 1995
April Mcclure, Ooltewah High School class of 2000
Jamie Newell Hollingsworth, Ooltewah High School class of 1995
Carrie Jones Hinesley, Ooltewah High School class of 1995
Robby Garcia, MBA, Ooltewah High School class of 2004
Wilma Young, Ooltewah High School class of 1958
Christine Archey, Ooltewah High School class of 1990
Kelley Hullender, Ooltewah High School class of 1999
Laura K. Sellers, Ooltewah High School class of 1996
Allison Fitzgerald Hobbs, Ooltewah High School Class of 1996
Will Hobbs, Ooltewah High School Class of 1997
Sam Axley, Ooltewah High School Class of 1986
Kristi O'Dell Hill, Ooltewah High School Class of 1987
Jill Gobert Conner, Ooltewah High School Class of 1995
Donna Hullander Gobert, Ooltewah High School Class of 1965
Cheryl Livingston Biggs, Ooltewah High School Class of 1988
Katie Cowley, Ooltewah High School Class of 1995
Tracy Simmons Downey, Ooltewah High School Class of 1997
David Stynchcombe, Ooltewah High School Class of 1993
Misty Fryar, Ooltewah High School Class of 1995
Devon R Loftin, Ooltewah High School Class of 1991
Kelly Thomas Ellis, Ooltewah High School Class of 1987
Gina Lansford Howell, Ooltewah High School Class of 1978
David Blair, Ooltewah High School Class of 1992
Adrienne Messer, Ooltewah High School Class of 1997
Scarlett Johnson Dunn, Ooltewah High School Class of 1998
Jake Hadacek, Ooltewah High School Class of 1995
Danny Lay, Ooltewah High School Class of 1995
Rodney K Hardy, Ooltewah High School Class of 1995
Shelia Swanson, Ooltewah High School Class of 1978
Paula Runyan McDaniel, Ooltewah High School Class of 1986
Matthew Thompson, Ooltewah High School Class of 1993
Jessie Jumper, Ooltewah High School Class of 1995
Fred Clark III, Ooltewah High School Class of 2003
Alisha Barrett-Ross, Ooltewah High School Class of 1998
Melissa Kuebler Warner, Ooltewah High School Class of 1991
Lori Reid, Ooltewah High School Class of 1990
Linda Baker, Ooltewah High School Class of 1960
Carmen Crockett Hankins, Ooltewah High School Class of 1997
Tara Nikki Hardy-Gladden, Ooltewah High School Class of 1991
Names added after initial letter sent:
Chris Simmons
Catt Damon
Rehannon Militello, Ooltewah High School Class of 1998
Mark Whitman, Ooltewah High School Class of 1994