NORTH CLARENDON, Vt. (WCAX) – One student’s senior portrait is causing controversy at a Vermont high school. The school won’t allow the photo in the yearbook even though the teen says there were no instructions to follow, and he’s frustrated the picture was shot down.
“I just think that senior pictures you’re supposed to be showing what you enjoy doing, so I tried to do that in mine,” said Preston Flanders, a senior at Mill River Union High School.
Last November, Flanders did what many high schoolers at Mill River Union do in their final year; he submitted a senior portrait for his yearbook. But the photo of him holding a firearm was denied and he was asked to resubmit.
Flanders says he wanted to use the photo to show his passion for hunting.
“I grew up hunting and my parents hunt, my grandparents hunt. I’ve been hunting since I was eight, yeah, it’s when I passed my hunter safety scores. I’ve gone to several different courses, I shoot at ranges, I like shooting, that’s what I like doing,” he said.
The superintendent says the photo was denied by the principal because, under school policy, depictions of guns are generally deemed to be inappropriate over safety concerns.
But Preston’s father, Nick Flanders, says there is no policy that specifically prohibits yearbook photos with guns. He’s on the school board and has brought up the issue at recent meetings hoping to convince the board to intervene.
“Obviously, we’re all hopeful, but it’s up to the board,” dad Nick Flanders said.
At this point, the school board has not taken any action. So for now, Preston Flanders will need to come up with a new senior portrait.
“Unfortunate, I guess you could say, because I really enjoy doing it and I see people sporting with you know books, pompoms for cheerleading or a baseball bat, but I’m not allowed to use what I’m passionate about in my senior photo,” he said.
Mill River’s superintendent says there hasn’t been any action by the school board on whether or not they will allow the photo in the yearbook, however, he did say the board and school will be creating more specific guidelines for the portraits for next year’s senior class.