At the time, Gross and Gonzalez told ABC 6 in Columbus that their coalition wanted to know what was being taught and felt that they were not being heard. Gross said that people felt, “marginalized. Intimidated. Isolated. And ultimately discriminated against.” Gonzalez stated that the DEI agenda at the school felt like “inherent bigotry.”
The pair were accused by the school of “false and misleading attacks” and later informed them that their children would be denied re-enrollment that fall. The school also took the extra step of informing other families of the expulsion. In that letter, Head of School Melissa Soderberg claimed that Gross and Gonzalez had “pursued a course of action that has been anything but civil, respectful, and faithful to the facts.” She also accused the pair of causing pain and fear for physical safety among the faculty, staff, students, and even their families. The station said that the pair made an appearance on a podcast. One parent who supported the school’s position listened and commented:
The language was very incendiary and I actually contacted the school after that podcast. We know there were children recording their class lectures and discussions in class at the urging of their parents. I think there is a chilling of discussion in the classroom that I think it’s really problematic. The school does not teach, per se critical race theory. There are certainly components the students, especially in the upper school are exposed to, but they are not taught how to think and they are not told what to think. I think it is heart-wrenching that the children are sort of collateral damage. The school does not teach, per se critical race theory. There are certainly components the students, especially in the upper school are exposed to, but they are not taught how to think and they are not told what to think. I think it is heart-wrenching that the children are sort of collateral damage.
Gross told the outlet, “I believe they are trying to send a message to the other members of our coalition that if you speak out and you ask questions that they will punish your innocent children.”
On June 12 of this year, Gonzalez and Gross filed an official complaint in the Court of Common Pleas in Franklin County. Fox News notes that the pair are seeking damages from the academy. The complaint states in part, “One teacher stated, on the first day of class, that he would not communicate with any student who supported President Trump. Politically charged issues were regularly taught and discussed in the classroom without opposing viewpoints presented.” The complaint also alleges that Latinos were not offered inclusion to the extent that other minorities enjoyed. The head of the academy’s security filed a report with the local police department and the school told faculty that it had reported the pair to the FBI. That portion of the complaint reads:
During the meeting when faculty was told the FBI had been alerted, the environment was such that one of the Academy’s faculty members raised his/her hand and asked if the Child Plaintiffs should be treated differently. Another member of faculty stated, “it sounds like we have a mole’” The actions of the Academy and those of its affiliates, as directed by the Academy, had an extreme impact on the wellbeing of Plaintiffs. The Academy falsely accused the Parent Plaintiffs of being dangerous to the health and wellbeing of the entire Academy community and destroyed their reputations with many of the people they had spent years working and learning with.
Gross told Fox that the school’s retaliation turned the community against her family to the point that her daughter left the state for her schooling.
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