Ponce
14th April 2011, 04:47 PM
U.S. school renames Easter eggs ‘spring spheres’.
A teenager volunteering at a Seattle elementary school was apparently told to use the name "spring spheres" when she tried giving kids plastic Easter eggs filled with candy.
It’s almost time for that annual springtime ritual — the spring sphere hunt! Or, to most people, the Easter egg hunt.
A teenager volunteering at a Seattle elementary school was apparently told to use the politically correct name “spring spheres” when she tried giving kids plastic Easter eggs filled with candy.
But a Seattle school board spokesperson told the Star it has not been able to confirm whether the incident actually happened.
“They said I could do it as long as I called the treats ‘spring spheres.’ I couldn’t call them Easter eggs,” a 16-year-old named Jessica told a Seattle radio station.
She declined to give her last name and the name of the school where the incident happened on the air.
“I thought it was ridiculous, it was just so silly,” she said. “But I wanted something to give to the kids, so I was going to roll with it.”
What did the kids think? They just called them Easter eggs anyway, she said.
The teen called the phrase part of the school’s “abstract behaviour rules.”
Seattle Public Schools has received so many inquiries about the incident, it released a statement on its website to clarify its religious policy:
“We have a ‘Religion and Religious Accommodation’ policy, approved by the School Board in 1983, stating that ‘no religious belief or non-belief should be promoted by the School District or its employees, and none should be disparaged,’” it reads.
“There are no new District policies on religion or holiday observance guidelines.”
The school board does not have a specific policy on what staff call Easter “or any holiday,” said board spokesperson Teresa Wippel.
The incident is gaining international attention and is a hot Twitter topic, with people largely criticizing the board.
“Seattle school renames Easter eggs ‘Spring Spheres.’ For Pete’s sake. I'm Jewish and I think ‘Easter eggs’ are fine,” commented @margoandhow.
@jethananderson wrote: “PC police at a Seattle elementary school have renamed Easter eggs ‘spring spheres’ ... one of the dumbest and saddest things I’ve ever heard.”
Meanwhile, the school board has asked its schools for anyone with information on the incident to come forward so they can confirm what happened, said Wippel.
“The truth is that we don’t know that it actually happened,” she said.
“It wasn’t like it violated any policy, (but) we have so many other issues here this frankly isn’t at the top of the list.”
Wippel said she is not surprised by how many bloggers and media websites have picked up the story.
“Whenever you talk about religion it raises people’s concern. It’s a hot-button issue for many folks.”
http://www.thestar.com/living/article/974788--u-s-school-renames-easter-eggs-spring-spheres
A teenager volunteering at a Seattle elementary school was apparently told to use the name "spring spheres" when she tried giving kids plastic Easter eggs filled with candy.
It’s almost time for that annual springtime ritual — the spring sphere hunt! Or, to most people, the Easter egg hunt.
A teenager volunteering at a Seattle elementary school was apparently told to use the politically correct name “spring spheres” when she tried giving kids plastic Easter eggs filled with candy.
But a Seattle school board spokesperson told the Star it has not been able to confirm whether the incident actually happened.
“They said I could do it as long as I called the treats ‘spring spheres.’ I couldn’t call them Easter eggs,” a 16-year-old named Jessica told a Seattle radio station.
She declined to give her last name and the name of the school where the incident happened on the air.
“I thought it was ridiculous, it was just so silly,” she said. “But I wanted something to give to the kids, so I was going to roll with it.”
What did the kids think? They just called them Easter eggs anyway, she said.
The teen called the phrase part of the school’s “abstract behaviour rules.”
Seattle Public Schools has received so many inquiries about the incident, it released a statement on its website to clarify its religious policy:
“We have a ‘Religion and Religious Accommodation’ policy, approved by the School Board in 1983, stating that ‘no religious belief or non-belief should be promoted by the School District or its employees, and none should be disparaged,’” it reads.
“There are no new District policies on religion or holiday observance guidelines.”
The school board does not have a specific policy on what staff call Easter “or any holiday,” said board spokesperson Teresa Wippel.
The incident is gaining international attention and is a hot Twitter topic, with people largely criticizing the board.
“Seattle school renames Easter eggs ‘Spring Spheres.’ For Pete’s sake. I'm Jewish and I think ‘Easter eggs’ are fine,” commented @margoandhow.
@jethananderson wrote: “PC police at a Seattle elementary school have renamed Easter eggs ‘spring spheres’ ... one of the dumbest and saddest things I’ve ever heard.”
Meanwhile, the school board has asked its schools for anyone with information on the incident to come forward so they can confirm what happened, said Wippel.
“The truth is that we don’t know that it actually happened,” she said.
“It wasn’t like it violated any policy, (but) we have so many other issues here this frankly isn’t at the top of the list.”
Wippel said she is not surprised by how many bloggers and media websites have picked up the story.
“Whenever you talk about religion it raises people’s concern. It’s a hot-button issue for many folks.”
http://www.thestar.com/living/article/974788--u-s-school-renames-easter-eggs-spring-spheres