CP review finds majority of Sherman ISD school board identifies as Christian
Two members of a North Texas school board that voted to remove a superintendent who objected to a same-sex “kiss” during a school play belong to the same LGBT-affirming denominational church.
A recent investigation commissioned by the Sherman ISD Board of Trustees revealed that former Superintendent Tyson Bennett intervened in the casting of the high school musical “Oklahoma!” with the intent to prevent same-sex kissing.
This intervention came to light after a female student who identifies as a male was removed from her leading male role in the production last November, a decision that sparked a national conversation surrounding gay, lesbian and trans-identified students’ rights.
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The third-party investigation aimed to address concerns raised by the LGBT community following the controversial casting decision. As the findings emerged, the controversy placed the school at the center of a national debate about LGBT representation for students in public educational settings.
In May, the Sherman ISD board approved a voluntary separation agreement with Bennett, who had worked in the district as an assistant superintendent and other administrative roles for nearly 16 years before he was named superintendent in April 2022.
The investigation revealed Bennett took exception to casting the female student who identifies as trans in the starring male role in order to avoid a same-sex kissing scene, according to The Dallas Morning News.
Blaming Bennett’s actions regarding the casting and staging of the high school musical “Oklahoma!” for putting staff in “unnecessary and uncomfortable positions” and causing “unnecessary distress” among students, the DMN report added, “The situation created by Dr. Bennett was based on his personal perceptions rather than fact.”
Investigators clarified that Bennett had claimed to the school board that he was preventing “same-sex kissing on stage,” a scenario that “factually did not occur and was never intended to occur.” This investigation sheds light on the impact of his intervention on the school community and raises questions about the influence of personal beliefs in educational settings.
A Christian Post review of the Sherman ISD Board of Trustees website found that six of seven board members identify as church attendees at various denominations, including Baptist and Assemblies of God.
Two members, President Wendy Vellotti and Secretary Jennifer Johnstone Shelby, identified themselves as members of First United Methodist Church in Sherman, a congregation of about 1,000 located across the street from Sherman City Hall.
Velotti’s bio states she is a member of First Methodist Sherman, while Shelby identified herself as both a member and youth teacher at the church, as well as a kids’ ministry and hospitality team volunteer.
First Methodist Sherman describes its congregation as “young and old, married and single, gay and straight, liberal and conservative, non-conformists and traditionalists, those recovering from addictions, those still battling addictions, and those whose challenges take other forms.”
Led by the Rev. Denise Peckham, First Methodist Sherman hosted a “family-friendly drag show” in May 2023 in conjunction with a pride organization that featured drag performers and at least one adult in a “furry” costume.
The “Pride Prom” event hosted by Grayson County Pride was initially scheduled for Pecan Grove Park West in Sherman, located about 65 miles north of Dallas.
Prior to the event, however, the location was reportedly changed to 118 W Pecan Street, the address of the Mosaic Campus of First Methodist Sherman, according to the church’s website.
A handful of protesters held signs and one waved an American flag at the event, where children were seen on video attending the drag show.
In 2022, Grayson County Pride organized a similar “all ages” drag event at Pecan Grove Park, complete with an ”alcohol-free mocktail bar.”
Under its “Racial Reconciliation” section, the First Methodist Sherman site also links out to Common Sense Media, which features “Growing Up Queer” books and LGBT “thoughtful movies and TV shows” for young people, including the controversialI Am Jazz book.
The book, co-authored by LGBT activist Jessica Herthel and trans-identified reality TV star Jazz Jennings, tells the story of a 2-year-old boy who begins the process of “transitioning” to look more like a girl with the approval of his parents.
CP reached out Friday to several Sherman ISD board members for comment. This story will be updated if a response is received.
The initial controversy began last November over the production of “Oklahoma!” when Sherman High School released a statement acknowledging “questions” about how students were assigned particular roles in the classic stage play.
That statement indicated that, while there was “no policy on how students are assigned to roles,” school officials decided that “the sex of the role as identified in the script will be used when casting.”
As a result of that policy, Max Hightower, then a senior at Sherman High School, was notified about the policy, sparking mainstream news media coverage from outlets including NBC News Out, the network’s platform for “stories, original videos and other unique content about, and of interest to, the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer community.”
School officials postponed the “Oklahoma!” performance until January. The school district later suspended Bennett before parting ways in May.
Ian M. Giatti is a reporter for The Christian Post and the author of THE ASSEMBLY ON THE ROCK: Israel, the New Covenant, + the Continuity of Scripture. He can be reached at: ian.giatti@christianpost.com.
