COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. Allegations of racist behavior coming from students and spectators of a private Christian school in Parker at Colorado high school football games could jeopardize the schools athletic programs indefinitely if it fails to implement immediate changes to its culture, officials from the Colorado High School Activities Association warned Thursday.

Lutheran High School, which has been embroiled in controversy over reported racist incidents at football games for nearly a month, is now facing suspension from CHSAA-sponsored games and other activities unless it completes a corrective action plan that addresses game management, spectator conduct, staff training and school culture.

In the meantime, CHSAA has placed the schools athletic department on probation for at least 12 months after determining that racist and discriminatory language and unacceptable behavior occurred at Lutheran athletic events.

Racism and discrimination have no place in our schools or at our events. CHSAA takes sportsmanship, crowd control and the treatment of every participant at our events seriously, and every member school is responsible for the conduct of its coaches, players and spectators, officials said in a statement Thursday.

Officials from the states governing body for high school athletics said they were forced to consider suspending Lutheran High Schools membership in the Association following a comprehensive review of documentation, official game reports, and first-hand accounts that member schools gathered from their students and communities.

The racist incidents occurred while visiting Lutheran High School played against Sand Creek High on Sept. 24 and Rampart High School on Oct. 2 and 3.

Families who reached out to News5 about the racist incidents said Black cheerleaders from Sand Creek High were subjected to racial slurs during the game and were even called Harriet Tubman by Lutheran High students. The racist harassment was so severe Sand Creek cheerleading coach Sanaa Ford had to escort a group of Black cheerleaders to their cars before the game was even over while students made monkey noises at them, according to The Denver Post.

Watch News5's first story on these allegations in the video below:

School districts respond to racist incidents at high school football games

News5 took those families concerns to Lutheran High School executive director Dan Gehrke, who said he was aware of the allegations and was actively investigating them.

But just three days after another racist incident occurred at Rampart High that reportedly involved the LuHi Lions, Air Academy High School announced it was forfeiting its homecoming football game against the private Christian school. School officials cited a coaching shortage as the reason for the forfeit and said they would instead schedule a flag football game versus TCA for Oct. 9.

In their statement, Air Academy High did not address the controversy over the racist allegations that now plague Lutheran High, only saying the school was committed to a safe and supportive environment for all students.

The lack of clarity forced Academy District 20, the school district under which Air Academy High School operates, to provide a statement of its own.

Academy District 20 believes racism in any form should never be tolerated. Any credible concerns of racist remarks should be taken seriously and fully investigated, district officials said.

In their statement, district officials said that conversations between Lutheran High and Air Academy High had taken place last week and both had agreed to limit fan attendance only to family members of both schools as well as add security enhancements.

Ultimately, individual decisions affected the level of coaching participation available. Given those circumstances, Air Academy was not in a position to safely field and support a varsity football contest, district officials said.

On Monday, School District 11 announced it, too, had decided that Coronado High School would also forfeit its game against Lutheran scheduled for this Thursday after both Lutheran and CHSAA failed to provide a statement to the district denouncing racist behavior ahead of the scheduled game.

Our athletic programs should reflect respect, dignity, and a commitment to equal and fair play, School District 11 officials said. In the absence of the requested statements, we do not believe proceeding with Thursdays game is consistent with those expectations.

CHSAA officials defended their delayed response in implementing disciplinary action against Lutheran in a statement last week, saying any disciplinary action required more than responding to individual reports.

We understand the desire for immediate action. But decisions of this weight must be based on complete information and acting before we have it would not serve student participants or our member schools, officials said. If CHSAA bylaws are determined to have been violated, consequences will be determined according to those bylaws.

If Lutheran fails to meet the requirements set forth by CHSAAs corrective action plan, the states governing body will recommend the Board of Directors suspend Lutherans membership for a length of time determined by the Board.

Gehrke, the LuHi Lions' executive director, said in a statement to families obtained by Denver7 later Thursday that Lutheran High "condemns racism in any form," adding the school will complete "every requirement CHSAA has set."

"We are disappointed that CHSAA reached its determination before our own review is complete and before it could consider our findings," Gehrke said. "In the meantime, I humbly ask that you keep our students, families, coaches and staff in your prayers, along with everyone affected."

This isnt the first time Lutheran High School students have been under the spotlight for alleged racist behavior.

In 2021, an investigation for unsportsmanlike conduct was launched against the LuHi Lions after an Evergreen High School parent alleged Lutheran High football players used racist slurs against Evergreens minority players and said, We will bury you like your dead coach, after a coach on the Jefferson County team had died, according to Denver7.

Montrose High School, which is expected to face Lutheran High on Oct. 23, announced later Thursday their game against the school was still on, but said in a statement that their decision to compete "should not be interpreted as minimizing the seriousness of these allegations or condoning the behavior described."

"Montrose County School District unequivocally condemns racism and discrimination in any form," Montrose High School Principal Heidi Voehringer said in a statement obtained by News5. "We remain committed to representing our school and community with the character, integrity, and respect we expect of all Red Hawks."

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PUEBLO, Colo. (KOAA) Pueblo city officials are reassuring residents that their drinking water is safe following two wastewater discharges earlier this week, but advised people to avoid recreational contact with the water in Pest House Gulch, Wild Horse Creek, and the immediate downstream areas for the time being.

Officials from the Pueblo West Metropolitan District said the wastewater discharges occurred Tuesday during planned infrastructure upgrades at the districts wastewater treatment facility, which is undergoing improvements to modernize its ultraviolet disinfection system.

The first discharge occurred at around 1:13 a.m., according to a news release.

In that first incident, district operators responded to an alert indicating a temporary failure of a contractor-operated bypass pumping system. Officials said that during that brief failure, approximately 54,000 gallons of fully treated but non-disinfected wastewater was discharged through the plant outfall into Pest House Gulch and Wild Horse Creek before district personnel restored operation of the facilitys primary UV disinfection system.

A second operational complication occurred later that day during ongoing system adjustments associated with the upgrade project that released approximately 185,000 gallons of partially treated and partially disinfected wastewater into Pest House Gulch and Wild Horse Creek between 10 a.m. and 1 p.m., according to officials.

District officials said personnel immediately responded to both incidents, restoring treatment processes and implementing operational measures to stabilize system performance. Both incidents were reported to the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment, officials said, and the district is working closely with the contractor to implement additional redundancy measures and safeguards to prevent similar incidents in the future.

Officials said water quality samples were collected and laboratory analysis for E. coli is currently underway but reassured the public drinking water is safe.

Pueblo Wests drinking water remains safe and unaffected, a spokesperson for the district said in a statement. These incidents involved treated wastewater discharges and do not impact the Districts drinking water treatment facilities, distribution system, or drinking water resources.

Though Pueblos drinking water is safe, officials are asking that out of an abundance of caution, people avoid recreational contact with the water in Pest House Gulch, Wild Horse Creek, and the immediate downstream areas while water quality monitoring and testing continue.

District officials said they will provide updates as more information and water quality monitoring results become available.

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