Jessica Mathews / news@whmi.com


A female student-athlete is alleged to made comments viewed as racist during a local middle school basketball game.

The incident happened during Monday’s 8th grade girl's basketball game when a Fowlerville student is alleged to have used inappropriate, hateful language when an East Lansing Middle School basketball team entered the gym.

Fowlerville Community Schools Matt Stuard sent out two communications to parents following the incident describing the comment as “hateful language” and assured the district was addressing the “unacceptable behavior directly with the student and parents”.

When contacted for comment, Stuard told WHMI the district had nothing more to add currently. The age of the student was not released and privacy laws prevent the district from sharing any specific actions taken.

Stuard stressed in the letter that the district is “committed to fostering a community where respect and sportsmanship are paramount".

The Lansing State Journal reports that East Lansing Superintendent Dori Leyko said a “racist comment” was directed at the team.

The two teams are scheduled to play again at the end of the month. A check of the online schedule shows Fowlerville is scheduled to play MacDonald Middle School in East Lansing on February 26th.

Leyko told the Journal administrators in both districts are working collaboratively to “repair the harm and give our students a voice to share their feelings and suggest next steps”.