Good morning,

I’m a senior at Panther Creek High School, and after hearing countless ignorant comments about the “terrible lies” said by our principal and the “appalling” number of fights occurring at my school,  I felt the need to set the record straight.

It seems like the only people that have spoken up about these events so far are those looking to draw attention and criticism to the school and its administration. Many, like the senior who allegedly wrote an email to ABC11, are exaggerating and misconstruing what’s actually been happening. For example, Dr. Hedrick, our principal, did NOT say the fights were staged. She simply relayed what was allegedly said by the two male students involved in the fight in the cafeteria (note: one fight).

It seems that everyone gets excited when the parents and media get involved, and this is magnified by the student body’s reluctance to adjust to the new principal. This is the first year at Panther Creek for Dr. Hedrick, our current principal, who replaced Mr. Nelson, the principal since Panther Creek’s inception in 2006. Many students are still uncomfortable with the idea that such an iconic principal has left, and they’re understandably wary of his successor. But Panther Creek is not in bad hands, and in fact Dr. Hedrick has brought many improvements to our school: staggered start times for lunch (to make it easier for students to go off campus for lunch), Counselor Corner (to help students with course changes and selection, college applications, and any other problems they may be facing), and even regular classroom visits, to name a few.

Here’s a breakdown of the seven fights posted on the Twitter account. Unless stated otherwise, the following is based on what I read on ABC11, Fox 8, the Twitter account for the fights, and what I can see with my own eyes:

1. The fight between two white male students in the cafeteria: whether it was staged or not remains to be discovered, but it appears that these students were trying to get attention in some way. Think about it this way: shortly after a Twitter focused around Panther Creek fights was created, it released a video that was already recording before the fight even started. Hypothetically, if the fights were staged, is it unlikely that the students would confess to it in a private disciplinary interview with the principal, but lie about it with their peers and parents? Wouldn’t this be an ideal way for someone to attract attention to themselves, by drawing attention to a polarizing debate about school violence and social media?
2. The fight with two black female students in the cafeteria occurred last year, on campus.
3. The fight with two black female students in the front courtyard occurred last year as well, on campus.
4. The fight on the bus does not appear to be on a bus used by Panther Creek, and the students don’t even look old enough to be in high school. According to some students, the fight took place during an 8th grade field trip with students from Mills Park Middle School.
5. The fight between two white female students happened by the woods in a residential area. School campuses are not located in residential areas.
6. The fight between two students in the science classroom was on-campus.
7. The fight between two female students in another classroom was also on-campus.

I will not deny that there are fights at Panther Creek High School, like any high school in the country, but they are not as frequent or devastating as everyone is making it out to be. I’ve been at this school since day one of my freshman year, and not once have I felt unsafe here; and in the past two weeks since this situation blew up in the media, many students have expressed the same sentiment to me. People feel safe here, and many of them say this school is the first school that made them feel that way. Often, students and staff talk about fights that occur in other schools in shock because of their circumstances and their terrifying results. When there’s a fight at Panther Creek, many students try to witness the “show” and inevitably end up as a part of the audience. At some other schools, students run away in fear for their lives. Two fights in one day is not normal, contrary to what an anonymous tweet might say: I can count on one hand the average number of fights that occur per semester. Most students would feel the same way, and they’d also express it if they weren’t afraid of the news media twisting their words. On top of that, we have competent administrators who quickly take control of any dangerous situation. We have one, sometimes two cops on campus, and a security guard that regularly patrols the campus. We even have anti-bullying posters on both sides of every floor in the building with anonymous tip hotlines.

The third best school in the state located in the third safest city in the country would not underperform when it comes to safety. If you want your kid to be any safer, you’d have to lock him/her in a cage with a tutor.

Thank you for your time,

Victor Eduardo, grade 12
President of the PCHS Gay-Straight Alliance
Technical Manager of the Panther Creek News Network