BEDFORD, N.H. (WHDH) - Students and staff at a New Hampshire high school are stunned by allegations that some male students took photos of female students without their knowledge and then graded their appearance.
The school superintendent of Bedford High School told 7News the administration is investigating that boys, freshman and sophomores about 14 or 15 years old, have been taking pictures of older female students.
“Students have come forward saying they have overheard conversations of other students talking about these things,” Superintendent Michael Fournier said. “We’ve taken those reports seriously.”
The reports also allege the boys made up trading cards with the girls’ names and the images of their body parts.
“I have not seen any of these pictures,” Fournier said. “My operating assumption based on the report from the student is that they’re clothed.”
One student was moved to start an online petition on Change.org, which calls for the boys to be expelled from school.
“The young women attending Bedford High School deserve justice,” the petition reads. “These shameful young boys are treating their fellow peers as sex objects.”
“I just think it’s wildly inappropriate,” student Samantha Reebenacker said. “I’m just disgusted and shocked, honestly. I can’t believe our classmates are doing this, and I just honestly wonder, like whose idea was this?”
School officials said as of now, they do not know the names of the kids involved. Bedford, New Hampshire police said this is a school matter because they’ve seen no evidence of a crime. However, police said they are ready to investigate pending additional evidence.
The superintendent hopes this will be a learning opportunity for families.
“It’s not boys being boys,” Fournier said. “They may think these things, but what’s in their heads are their own, but what they do and their actions have consequences.”
Fournier added that privacy of all students involved is protected under federal law.
(Copyright (c) 2023 Sunbeam Television. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)