Wisconsin school posts failing grades

MARSHFIELD (WAOW-TV) - A middle school principal in central Wisconsin is at the center of controversy, after posting failing grades for the whole school to see.

The list went up last week at Marshfield Middle School, outside of principal Dave Schoepke's office. It lists every student in the Marshfield Middle School with a failing grade.

Anyone on this list can't go to the school dance.

"Their name, class and the F by it. It showed the F grade. I was pretty distraught when I go there I took a picture of it," said parent James Krier.

His daughter is one of a hundred names on the F-list posted for the entire school to see.

"She couldn't believe it that she was on that list she was upset."

Principal Schoepke says his intent wasn't to embarrass students.

"What the kids have known for a long time is that if they have their names on a failing list, they may not have the opportunity to go to a dance or field trip or something like that, their privilege is gone."

It's the first time he's posted the F-list in public. He says posting the list of kids with failing grades was his way of motivating them to get their assignments in so they can go to the school dance, and it seems to have worked.

"I also told the kids that once they get their stuff in and get them off the list then you'll be eligible to go and I think we're about half way through our list and we probably half those kids getting assignments turned in, projects turned in so this failing grade will go away," said Schoepke.

Still, parents feel publishing failing grades is a violation of their child's privacy and not a form of motivation.

"You should notify the parents. It's not up to him. How is it going to help? It's going to run them down into the ground even further."

The district superintendent says the principal did violate student privacy rules. A federal law protects the privacy of student school records.