Parents rage as convicted sex offender is granted permission from school to attend children's dance
Warning: This article contains discussion of child abuse and sexual assault which some readers may find distressing.
Blue River Elementary School parents have slammed the school for not 'letting the parents know' it was allowing a sex offender to the dance.
Earlier this month, a sex offender who once admitted to having child pornography was allowed to go to an elementary school dance at Blue River Elementary School in the Blue Valley School District in Kansas City.
The elementary school dance - Sole Mate Dance - is reported as having been held for students in grades one through to six.
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FOX4 News Kansas City reports the man in question is living with a woman who has children in the district and he was given permission to go to the dance.
Emails viewed by the outlet between parents and the school district reportedly see the district outline sex offenders with family members of kids within the district are allowed to request permission to come to school events as long as they're monitored during such occasions.
Court documents show the man pleaded guilty in 2011 to having and sharing child pornography which included 'numerous images and movies [...] which depicted young girls nude, as well as images of girls between the ages of 1-14', including a young girl being sexually assaulted by an adult.
The man was sent to prison before getting supervised release and remains on the sex offender registry list and will do for the next 17 years.
Despite the school stating policies were followed, parents remain angry, speaking out against the school's decision.
While parent Colter Daubert 'understands' the school had 'a process to go through' he claims 'they didn't let any of the parents know'.
Daubert said: "When you go read about what he was charged with, then I'm not so fond of him taking videos.
"There's no way I would even let someone like that around the children."
Parent Natasha Goellner added: "It’s a school district. They have policies for everything. But they really didn’t have a policy put in place for sex offenders.
"[The School District] should know better."
And Blue Valley School District has since responded to concerns.
A spokesperson for the school told FOX4 News Kansas City: "We have heard the concerns expressed by some of our families.
"In March, the Board will review and revise policy, followed by a 30-day patron review period before final approval in April. We remain dedicated to maintaining a safe and supportive school environment. This policy update will reflect our ongoing commitment to student safety.”
UNILAD has contacted Blue Valley School District for comment.
If you’ve been affected by any of these issues or want to speak to someone in confidence regarding the welfare of a child, the Childhelp USA National Child Abuse Hotline (1-800-4-A-CHILD (1-800-422-4453) operates 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and receives calls from throughout the United States, Canada, US Virgin Islands, Guam and Puerto Rico.
Poppy Bilderbeck