Tuesday, May 7, 2013
Investigator: "Although permission was given to film a Harlem Shake video, the actions of the students in the video that was filmed in the cafeteria were outside the scope of the permission given."
From the Westonka School Board: The investigation into the Harlem Shake incident that occurred on Friday, Febr. 22, 2013, has concluded. Sixteen sets of parents were contacted to request that they and their children participate in the investigation. The investigator interviewed six parents, eight students and 11 employees as part of the investigation. Other students, parents and members of the community submitted written statements to the investigator. The investigation resulted in approximately 179 pages of findings, conclusions, interview summaries and supporting documents. Due to laws centered on what information can be shared, the Westonka School Board is limited in what we can say and what we can release. Data privacy is set by …
Monday, May 6, 2013
Westonka School Board will make public the findings of an investigation into the Feb. 22 suspensions of several high school students.
District officials say the results of a recently-completed investigation into the February suspensions of several high school students for doing the "Harlem Shake" in the lunchroom will be released and discussed at tonight's school board meeting. The item is No. 6 on the agenda's list of board discussion items. The full agenda is attached to this post. The suspended students included several hockey players, and their suspensions came less than 24 hours before an opening round playoff game—which Westonka eventually went on to lose. Tonight's meeting may be moved to the high school auditorium if attendance warrants. Athletic Director Dion Koltes was first place on leave following the incident and later resigned in the face of intense public …
Wednesday, March 13, 2013
Jeff Peterson will assume district's activity direction following this week's resignation of Dion Koltes.
Jeff Peterson has been named interim activities director for the Westonka School District. The announcement follows this week's resignation of Dion Koltes, who stepped down after coming under public pressure for his suspension of several high school students for doing the "Harlem Shake" during a recent lunch hour. Among the suspended students were six Mound Westonka High School hockey players—who at the time were less than 48 hours away from an opening round playoff game. The boys were kept off the ice, and Mound Westonka eventually lost the game and were eliminated from the state tournament. In a letter to parents written Wednesday morning, Peterson—who also serves as head baseball coach—did not make mention of the "Harlem Shake" or …
Tuesday, March 12, 2013
Dion Koltes came under heavy fire from parents in the Westonka community following the suspension of several students for performing the "Harlem Shake" during a lunch hour.
Westonka's activities director has resigned. Dion Koltes' resignation took effect at the end of Monday, March 11, and he will receive more than $25,000 in salary he was scheduled to receive for the rest of the 2012-13 school year. Koltes came under heavy fire from parents in the Westonka community following the suspension of six students for performing the "Harlem Shake" during a lunch hour. The students included several hockey players, and their suspensions came less than 24 hours before an opening round game—which Westonka eventually went on to lose. Related posts: The seven-page resignation agreement made public Tuesday afternoon (attached to this post) includes a clause absolving both Koltes and the district from any wrongdoing. From …
Friday, March 8, 2013
Kevin Borg says outside investigation is underway into events surrounding the suspension of six students for doing the Harlem Shake during lunch.
As was discussed in last week’s Borg Report, the Westonka School Board has authorized an investigation of the events surrounding the Feb. 22 incident in the Mound Westonka High School lunchroom. The investigation is now underway and is being conducted by attorney Tessa Wagner. While some people have asked questions about details surrounding the incident, I am not in a position to comment, as the Board is overseeing the investigation. According to School Board Chair Dave Botts, “In order to give these events the thorough examination that is clearly warranted, it would be premature to set a completion date. This investigation is the top priority of the board and we will use these findings to determine what changes should be made.” Related …
Friday, March 1, 2013
Kevin Borg says Westonka School Board has authorized an outside investigation of the Feb. 22 events.
I want to update you on events related to the situation that took place Feb. 22 in the Mound Westonka High School lunchroom that resulted in several students being disciplined for disrupting the educational environment and compromising student safety. Whether or not you have a student at the high school, we are a small community—and as such, we all feel the impact of something so painful and so public. First, let me say how sorry I am for the pain this has caused on many levels—for our students, our staff and our community. We care deeply about all of our students, and this has been a heartbreaking week for all of us. Second, the School Board has authorized an outside investigation of the Feb. 22 events. According to School Board Chair …
Tom Notch is a long time resident of the Westonka area, a former school board member and the parent of grown children.
Editor's note: The following is a letter sent by Lake Minnetonka resident Tom Notch to Westonka Superintendent Kevin Borg regarding the recent suspensions of six Mound Westonka High School students. Mr. Notch is a long time resident of the Westonka area, a former school board member and the parent of grown children. Dear Superintendent Borg, I received the following email auto reply from your computer last Monday indicating that you were out of the office until Monday, Feb. 25th. "I am out of the office until Monday, Feb. 25. I will respond to your message as soon as possible when I return." This prompts the following few questions for you: 1. Were you out of the district office and unavailable last Friday afternoon (Feb. 22) at the …
Monday, February 25, 2013
Hockey players were among those suspended last week; police dismiss citations; parents flood school board meeting.
Mound Westonka's athletic director was put on administrative leave Monday night at a school board meeting attended by well over 100 people. Dion Koltes found himself at the center of a statewide news story last week after he suspended several Mound Westonka High School hockey players for performing the "Harlem Shake" during an afternoon lunch hour. Exactly how long Koltes will be on leave was unclear as of this post. District administrators said the behavior crossed the line of acceptable school time conduct and initially suspended the students for two days—as well as kept them out of a first-round playoff hockey game. Mound Westonaka lost 4-2 at the hands of Blake, a team many high school hockey fans thought Westonka had a chance to beat…
Oscar Falls
2:26 pm on Wednesday, May 8, 2013
Double standards may not be acceptable, but they do exist. Realizing which ones are truly worth pursuing and which ones aren't worth the long time headache would be something to teach your children. If these kids are still fuming over this in four years it would be a sad statement. If MWHS hasn't learned from this, open enrollment is always an option. more ›