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By Khaleda Rahman
National Correspondent
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- A viral video shows students and staff licking cream off of plexiglass panes at a middle school in Kennewick, Washington.
- The video sparked outrage after it was posted on social media, but some defended the game.
- The school district's superintendent said an investigation determined the activity was not appropriate and said it would never be repeated.
A video showing a licking competition between students and staff at a middle school in Washington state went viral this month, sparking outrage from parents.
The game took place during an assembly at Desert Hills Middle School in Kennewick in March, local news station KNDU reported.
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Video recorded by students showed students and teachers simultaneously licking cream off of opposite sides of clear plexiglass planes.
"That's so gross," "I'm gonna throw up" and "What the heck" are among the things students can be heard yelling in the video.
Megan Sa, the mother of a student, posted the clip on her Facebook page, where it attracted more than 1,200 comments.
"You should be ASHAMED of yourselves!!!" Sa wrote in the April 12 post.
"In my opinion, we do not send our children to school to be exposed to highly sexualized behavior by adults," Sa told Fox News.
Newsweek could not immediately contact her for further comment.
Many were outraged, with one commenting on Sa's post that the game was "incredibly inappropriate."
"Disgusting. Completely inappropriate. Shameful," another added.
Another wrote: "That's so uncomfortable and wrong on so many levels. And definitely not hygienic especially after a pandemic."
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Another wrote: "I am baffled by the lack of judgement shown in picking appropriate school games for assemblies," another person wrote. "It's mind-boggling to watch this video and wonder how not one adult questioned whether this was the kind of appropriate teacher/student behavior they wanted to exemplify through a 'fun game?'"
However, some defended the school, saying it was students who had come up with the game.
"My daughter goes to this school, I know what happened here," one person wrote. "The KIDS made this game up. NOBODY was forced to do this and EVERYONE wanted it to be fun. This isn't supposed to be anything disgusting. If the kids didn't want to do it they didn't have to. It's not the staff's fault."
Another person wrote: "My daughter goes to school at DHMS and was at the assembly. This game was chosen by the students and agreed to by the staff. The staff who have been amazing to my kid for three years. Does it have bad optics? Perhaps. I'm not offended by it."
Another added: "I think people are just looking for any reason to criticize schools. I personally think they were having a fun day as every school has done for years."
Last week, the district's superintendent sent a letter to families saying the district had concluded the activity was not appropriate and would never occur again.
In statement to Newsweek, a spokesperson for the Kennewick School District said: "The activity that occurred is not approved or endorsed by the district. After conducting a thorough investigation into how and why this activity took place, it is clear that the intent of the activity was innocent and not ill-intended.
"However, the fact that the activity was planned, occurred and not stopped shows a lack of sound discernment and good judgment and is not aligned with district expectations and policies. The district is taking corrective actions to address this incident."
The school's principal, Casey Gant, issued a statement apologizing for the game.
"On behalf of Desert Hills Middle School, I would like to apologize for the activity that took place during our recent assembly," Gant said.
"As building principal, I take ownership for the events that occur in my school, and I recognize the impact that this situation has had on our school community. I am committed to the safety of our students and staff and will ensure that all future activities meet the highest professional standards and adhere to district policy."
Update 4/20/23, 9:04 a.m. ET: This article has been updated to add a statement from the Kennewick School District.
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