Several Parents Attend Santorum Speech at Grosse Pointe South

About a dozen parents—including many who spoke at last week's Grosse Pointe Public School Board meeting criticizing the district's handling of the Rick Santorum speech—attended Wednesday's assembly at South High School. 

Their attendance was granted late Tuesday after one parent, Paula Tech, spoke to the Grosse Pointe Public School board. Tuesday's meeting was a special meeting called for the purpose of interviewing candidates who applied to fill a vacancy on the school board. 

Tech addressed the board, explaining that regardless of what anyone thinks of the student organization, Young Americans for Freedom, it has provided her son with positive direction in his life. She then told the board she believes parents should still be allowed to attend the event. 

"We as their parents feel that with all their hard work over past two years that has led to this assembly it is the equivalent of their championship game and we should be able to be sitting in the bleachers, feeling and sharing their experience among their peers not watching at home on the TV or at the community presentation," Tech said. 

She also referenced a board policy, 9250—Relations with Parents, in which parents are encouraged to be involved in their child's educational experience at the schools. She described her interaction with officials before Tuesday as less than successful and said she was trying to be a rule-follower in making her request. 

She sat back down after her comments and waited until the board meeting came to an end. She then approached board members Cindy Pangborn—who is the adviser to South's Young Americans For Freedom student organization—and board president Joan Dindoffer. 

The exchange became heated. Tech began questioning why she would not be allowed to attend the assembly considering her son and other YAF members were to be recognized. 

Dindoffer said she was unaware that any students were to be recognized and said the event is closed. Pangborn also joined the conversation, explaining the parents of students who are being recognized should be allowed. Dindoffer said the assembly was simply Santorum's speech. 

The conversation briefly stopped but then continued a few minutes later when Tech approached Dindoffer again after she was trying to leave. She was advocating for 12 parents, including herself. 

The parents arrived before some media Wednesday. They sat in the second row of the bleachers away from the students in attendance. 

Superintendent Tom Harwood said the decision to allow those parents was last-minute and related to Tech's plea Tuesday night. He said the argument about students being recognized during the assembly was a last-minute effort to get them inside.

No students were scheduled to be recognized as part of the assembly, he said beforehand. None were. 

Chairman of the South chapter of Young Americans for Freedom Langston Bowens spoke as part of the introduction for Santorum, providing information about his career and history to the students.