IPSWICH, Mass. — In a new statement provided to Boston 25 News on Friday, Ipswich Superintendent Brian Blake and High School Principal Jonathan Mitchell pushed back against claims that the cigars at the center of a controversial student suspension ahead of a lacrosse playoff showdown were fake and said the players themselves decided to forfeit the game.
Blake says that a wildly circulated photo of the players holding full length cigars - which the teens claim to be made of dry tea and other products - does not tell the full story.
According to Ipswich schools, a second photo that was deleted from one of the parents’ Facebook pages shows “the cigars smoked down significantly; a cloud of smoke surrounding one of the students; and a torch-type lighter visible in the hand of another of the students.”
Ipswich officials ultimately decided to suspend the six players in the photograph for the team’s Division 4 State Semifinals game against Cohasset High School, citing MIAA rules on tobacco use.
Team members said the school administration made the decision to forfeit, but Blake said Friday that three other players refused to play in solidarity with the suspended seniors, leaving only 11 available players.
Ipswich school officials say Coach Glenn Foster polled the team, and the players voted “overwhelmingly” to forfeit the game.
When Ipswich school officials began investigating, Superintendent Blake says the administration was given a receipt from a Shaw’s grocery store. However, Blake says the date and time were smudged out on the receipt.
Ipswich High School Principal Jonathan Mitchell went to the Shaw’s on Thursday, June 11 and allegedly obtained a copy of the receipt provided by parents. However, Ipswich school officials say the new, unsmudged receipt proves the tea bags were purchased the day after the graduation ceremony and 20 minutes after school officials alerted parents to the investigation.
“We fully understand the disappointment, frustration, and emotions that have accompanied this outcome. As educators and school leaders, we are always disappointed when we must make difficult decisions such as this. But as educators and school leaders, we also have the responsibility to investigate possible violations of the rules, to provide students with due process, to carefully review the facts, and to follow and enforce established policies, making decisions that uphold the standards to which all students are held,” a joint statement by Blake and Mitchell reads. “One of the most important lessons we teach young people is that choices have consequences, even when those consequences are difficult or painful. While this outcome was heartbreaking for the student- athletes, their families, their coaches, and our school community, we remain committed to applying our policies consistently and acting in what we believe to be the best interests of the integrity of our educational and athletic programs.”
“These kids did nothing wrong and they were punished to nth degree,” parent Drew Wile told Boston 25 News. “When you have all that effort put in, it’s a real harsh life lesson that they are learning right now.”
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