Response from CG Senior

May 14, 2020

Dear Center Grove Community, 

As you know, there was a student-led event in the hopes of raising the spirits of seniors that are missing out on the normal festivities. As seniors, we have had so many experiences taken away that would have helped us to enjoy these last few moments of our high school careers. The intention of this event was to safely enjoy this annual tradition with all the social distancing protocols in place. It was never intended that the participation rate would be this high or that a large group photo would be taken. It was a poor decision that occured in the heat of the moment; we acknowledge the risk that it puts on our community and apologize for that. 

We’re sorry. 

In this hectic time, we need to come together as a community. With senior year coming to a halt, we will all be heading in so many different directions very soon. School spirit is the one thing that continues to connect us all. Center Grove Community is so great, and we have so much to be proud of. 

We encourage all seniors that have participated in this event to follow the protocols in order to minimize the effect of this event. Stay home, practice social distancing, wear masks, and if you start having symptoms, isolate yourself and get tested. This is the only way we can keep our mistake from having a larger impact on the community as a whole. 

We would like to thank all the students, parents, and administrators that have gone to great lengths to raise school spirits in other ways that do comply with the safety guidelines. We appreciate every person that has helped ‘paint the town red,’ participated in the online senior week, and those that have reached out to local businesses. We would also like to thank the local businesses for providing discounts for our seniors this year. Thank you all for helping us through this unprecedented time. 

Stay well and be safe. 

Sincerely,
CG Student

Editor’s Note: 

CG Publications has been asked why the student response letter was published anonymously. It’s true that our editorial policy ordinarily requires Letters to the Editor to be signed. However, these are extraordinary times.
When our editor penned the controversial Open Letter, he knew the wrath he could face. Our writers faced shameless and unfiltered words from the community when they wrote an Open Letter during election season about the referendum. And yet, he signed his name. He was hoping to help his peers see their actions from a different perspective and encourage (prod?) them to make safer choices. He knew what he was getting into, and in fact, some behavior and conversation in the community has changed as a result of his letter.
However, the writer of the response is not a CG Publications student. The writer did not know the certainty of the wrath, nor the vitriol, that would ensue.
In this case, CG Publications chose to publish the letter anonymously in accordance with the Society of Professional Journalist’s ethic of “Minimize Harm.” We did not wish to subject an innocent student, one who was well-intentioned and posed an intelligent, thoughtful response, to face the commentary of the community.
We have also received comments that this letter was penned by one student and may not represent the views of all seniors, so we have edited the signature and title to be more accurate.
CG Publications works to move conversations forward. We are glad to have sparked a conversation about this and other topics of relevance to our community. It is always our hope that our community will respect the diverse range of opinions within our student body and allow us to publish them without fear of retaliatory remarks.