Peters Township School District apologizes for 'insensitive' costumes at Woodland Hills game

Peters Township School District officials formally apologized to their counterparts at Woodland Hills for an “insensitive” choice of costumes by two drum majors during an Oct. 30 football game between the schools.

The two students wore black, full-body spandex suits that appeared to some as if they were in blackface during a marching band performance before the game.

Superintendent Jeannine French wrote in a Tuesday letter to Woodland Hills Superintendent James Harris that the students wore the costumes without harmful intent.

“Nonetheless, their choice of costumes, in the context of the game, was insensitive,” French wrote. “Our investigation also revealed that there were multiple missed opportunities for adults present at the game to address the costumes prior to the students entering the field.”

French apologized “for the harm and hurt that our actions and inactions caused” everyone in the Woodland Hills community.

“I would like to personally thank you, the Woodland Hills coaches and athletic director for your pursuit of change over blame, and your willingness to work with us to turn a hurtful situation into a teachable moment calling for us to do better and be better,” French wrote.

Peters was quick to respond and the apology was sincere, Harris said.

Several Peters school board members also contacted Harris. Woodland Hills is advising Peters about resources it can use to provide training for staff and students to prevent something like this from happening again.

Peters Township officials didn’t immediately respond to requests for further comment.

Woodland Hills Athletic Director Ron Coursey called the apology “an excellent first step to begin the healing process.”

But Peters officials need to implement diversity, implicit bias and racial sensitivity training for students and staff members, Coursey said.

That training appears to be in the works, Harris said.

“There is still very much more to go,” he said.

The Western Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic League has asked to receive a report about the incident from Peters by Wednesday. As of Wednesday morning, it hadn’t received that report, WPIAL Executive Director Amy Scheuneman said.