Students at SM Northwest and SM East as well as other area high schools wore black today to raise awareness for sexual assault victims.

This follows  KSHB’s Lisa Benson (@lisabensonKSHB) report of a sexual assault at SM East.

“I did send out a statement to parents reminding them not to be misled by rumors or misinformation or hearsay,” SM East principal John McKinney said. “If there is anything even remotely close to what is being perpetuated by media, anxious for clicks and viewers, they would hear from me.”

The Family Emergency Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) prevents teachers and administrators from sharing information regarding students with media or other parents.

“For their privacy, we don’t make a statement that we send to every single parent at that stage in the process,” McKinney said. “What we have to do is allow the investigation and the process to take place, and that’s out of respect for the privacy of the student involved.  And that’s so that we don’t in any way alter the course of the investigation. ”

Both SMSD and the Prairie Village Police Department are conducting investigations into the claim.

McKinney sent two emails: one to students and one to parents.

Students:

Students of SME,

It is not often that I email you, but I received an email that contained such misinformation and untruths that I thought it was important to respond. If an occurrence being described on many media outlets, and now unfortunately believed and spread by our very own students, occurred on the SME campus, you would not need to hear about it on the news. You would hear about it from me. Administrators and teachers are required by law to maintain the privacy of all students. Unfortunately, this puts us in a difficult position as we are not able to outwardly refute rumors, misinformation or false claims made by others – including news sources. That is where trust comes in – the trust we have developed over many years of working with you, the students of Shawnee Mission East. It is my hope that you will trust that this administration would never do anything to put the safety of our students at risk. You can trust that anything or anyone that jeopardizes the physical or emotional well-being of a student will be swiftly addressed and appropriate actions taken. That has and always will be the case.

So, yes, wear black tomorrow. Support, educate and empower your fellow students. But don’t do it in the name of lies or hearsay. That only detracts from the powerful and important message you’re so ardently trying to convey.

If you have questions or concerns, please come see me. My office door always has been and always will be open.

Mr. McKinney

Parents:

Parents & Guardians,

This is a formal statement to address a story being reported by local media about SME. I want to assure you that there is nothing more important to the Shawnee Mission School District and Shawnee Mission East than the safety of our students. The SME administration takes the safety, well-being and privacy of every student very seriously. You can trust that anything or anyone that jeopardizes the physical or emotional well-being of a student will be swiftly addressed and appropriate actions taken. That always has been and always will be the case. We take the trust that you have in our school and staff very seriously. Please also understand that the story the media is perpetuating involves minors – legally, neither the school nor the district are at liberty to share specific information about students or ongoing investigations. This obviously puts us at a disadvantage against rumors, hearsay, conjecture and misinformation. But, again, we are committed to maintaining the safety and the privacy of our students, even when doing so casts a questioning light on our efforts. We ask for your continued trust and support as we balance the education and privacy of our students with the media’s seeming insatiable need for information.

If your son or daughter would like to meet with a counselor, social worker or administrator, please ask them to come by the administrative or counseling office tomorrow. We will see anyone who comes in. Thank you,

John McKinney