The Sarasota (Fla.) County School District confirmed they are looking into a racially offensive promposal that was posted to social media.
A spokesperson for the district confirmed the Riverview High School senior posted a picture that they worry will be a disruptor to the school and student safety.
The post made to Snapchat reads, "If I was Black I'd be picking cotton, but I'm white so I'm picking U 4 Prom?"
The district said they have not concluded if the 18-year-old will be banned from prom as it's an ongoing investigation.
Sarasota County Schools also said they sent a text alert to parents Monday morning about the situation and that they plan to have more information late Monday.
The student, who Scripps station WFTS in Tampa is not identifying, also posted an apology to social media.
The following message was sent to parents and students on Monday morning:
Good morning. This is Kathy Wilks, acting principal of Riverview High School. We want to make everyone aware of a student’s social media post that has caused a very concerning situation. It involves one of our seniors and his “promposal” to another student. It was racial in nature and administration became aware of it last night.
Many who saw the post are understandably upset with its contents as well as the subsequent commentary to the post. Riverview High School absolutely does not condone or support the message conveyed in this post.
The student’s post is under investigation by administration; the parents of the students involved have been contacted and appropriate action will be taken based on the investigation. We are focused on ensuring that Riverview High School provides a safe and secure environment for all of our students and that all students feel welcome and understand the value that they all bring to our school community. Our guidance counselors and administrators are available for any student who wish to speak to someone regarding the issue. Riverview High School has a wonderful student population and we know our school will use this incident as an opportunity to have productive conversations about respect for one another. We look forward to the start of a new week and know that together, we will demonstrate our pride in the spirit of our school through caring for each other. Thank you.
