Organizers defend sex talk at Boulder High

Brittany Anas, Daily Camera

Published May 16, 2007 at midnight

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Conference on World Affairs leaders are defending a panel on sex, teens and drugs held at Boulder High School, saying complaints from a parent and student are the first of their kind in a decade-old partnership with the school.

In a statement issued Tuesday, conference organizers, who reviewed recordings from the 90-minute panel, said the participants spoke "candidly and sensibly to the high school audience, providing cautionary information about alcohol consumption, drugs, sexual issues and teens."

Priscilla White, whose daughter, Daphne, attended a panel session, complained to the Boulder Valley school board last week, reading explicit excerpts from the panel's April 10 discussion. Daphne told participants during the panel's question-and-answer session that she was offended by their blasé attitudes toward sex. She accused them of presenting one-sided views and discrediting abstinence.Daphne was required to attend the "STDs: Sex, Teens and Drugs" panel in the high school's auditorium after her teacher, like several others, canceled class and instead took students to the CWA session.

A memo from incoming Boulder Valley Superintendent Chris King said no student should have been forced to attend the panel, and he said an apology is due to the White family.

The CWA statement was signed by Jim Palmer, director of the conference; Jane Butcher and Juli Steinhauer, co-chairwomen of the conference; and Maura Clare, director of public affairs for the event.

The White family, in a written statement Tuesday, said the CWA "is trying to defend what is indefensible" and said the panelists irresponsibly advised Boulder High students to have sex and use drugs.

Last week, Priscilla White complained to the school board that the panelists talked to hundreds of high school students about the difficulty of maintaining an erection while using condoms, the naturalness of experimenting with same-sex relationships and why drugs should be legalized.

School board members agreed it was inappropriate.

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