Warwick Calls LNP article “Inaccurate”

**VIDEO BELOW**-Parents React to Board Decision Abstinence Speaker Pam Stenzel Will Address Students as Planned

The Warwick School District asserts in a written statement read during the board meeting Tuesday night that a Lancaster Newspapers article about a planned abstinence speaker used “inaccurate information and snippets of video out of context.” “Parents who shared concerns with us last week often referenced the inflamed and inaccurate information presented by the newspaper,” the school district wrote.

Lancaster Newspapers published a story online on October 15 just an hour after the district sent an email notifiying parents of the assembly. District officials say the email, which included an opt-out form, was leaked to the publication. Controversy erupted as Warwick parents learned of the assembly through the LancasterOnline story and social media.

The  LancasterOnline article featured two videos of Stenzel from YouTube, exclusively quoted parents opposed to the presentation, and a featured a headline that led one reader posting from a Facebook account under the name Scott Musser to comment “seems meant to incite controversy.” The November 19 assembly for Warwick middle and high school students became a flash point for district criticism on social media as soon as the article was published.

Barb Roda, executive editor of Lancaster Newspapers, which operates LancasterOnline and is the parent company of the Lititz Record Express, has not yet responded to two separate emails requesting comment.An LNP editor who answered the phone Tuesday night refused to comment regarding the article.  Emails to several LNP editors have gone unanswered.

An article in the Lititz Record Express published Wednesday indicated that the notification to parents was leaked to “Lancaster media,” but failed to identify Lancaster Newspapers, their parent company, by name.

While an atmosphere of respect prevailed among parents who were vocal at Tuesday night’s meeting of the Warwick School Board, where those having concerns were given opportunity to speak to the board about a district plan to host an assembly in two schools, it was a far cry from the reaction on social media in the wake of the LNP story.

After hearing comments from a small number concerned parents, school board president Timothy Quinn read a prepared statement that thanked those in attendance and informed them that the assembly would go on as planned and that Stenzel would speak to middle and high school students.

For parents who are opposed to Stenzel’s appearance, it was a disappointment.

“I do not feel that the board has adequately listened to concerns,” said Marie Firestone after the meeting. Firestone made public comment against the speaker to the board. “A decision had already been made before we walked in the door.”

That decision, the district said in the statement, is based on a need expressed by many families for a presenter to focus on the topic (abstinence) and the district’s desire to respond to that need.

Warwick parent Loren Miller spoke during the public comment portion of the meeting in favor of Stenzel’s assembly, and afterward was pleased at the board’s handling of the matter.

“We’re very proud that members of our community-leaders in business and in education and in other key areas-are willing to serve and are willing to make decisions that are not necessarily popular all the time, but yet stay true to core values of Warwick High School, and school district at large,” said Miller.

A subsequent editorial published on October 19 by Lancaster Newspapers was critical of the Warwick School Board decision to pay the speaker $3,500 of “taxpayer money” for Stenzel to address teens at the two schools. Stenzel will discuss the dangers of sexually transmitted diseases, the realities of teen pregnancy, and the option of abstinence, augmenting what the district describes as “comprehensive evidence-based sex education program.”

Controversy in the wake of the Lancaster Newspapers article may have actually driven up the cost to the district to host the speaker. According to Warwick officials, negotiations between Stenzel’s booking agent and other local districts fell apart soon after the publication of the LancasterOnline article.

“The advent of the article dried up any other interest from districts that might have been considering her,” said April Hershey, Superintendent of the Warwick School district in an interview today. She explained that the cost of Stenzel’s presentation goes down as the number of schools that book the speaker in an area increases.

“It would have been cheaper for all of us,” Hershey said. Stenzel previously spoke at Warwick and Conestoga Valley schools in 2006. LNP editor Barb Rhoda and reporter Kara Newhouse have failed to respond to requests by LititzDailyNews.com for comment.

While some Warwick parents plan to opt-out their students from the assembly, parents from outside the district are trying to find ways to get their students in the door. Hershey has received inquiries from non-resident students and parents alike who would like to hear what Stenzel has to say firsthand.

“The evening event is open to the public,” said Hershey, who has invited interested non-resident parents and students to come to the public session at 7 p.m. on November 19 at the Warwick High School. There is no charge to attend.

Lynn Rebuck covers education for LititzDailyNews.com. She welcomes your email at [email protected].

This story was last updated at 10:58 a.m. on October 24, 2014.