Sevier County Parents Demand Transparency After Excessive Student Punishment at South Sevier Middle School
Parents Seek Release of Video on Student Punishment at South Sevier Middle School
Two parents in Sevier County, Jared and Shana Kummer, are requesting the release of a video showing alleged excessive exercise as punishment at South Sevier Middle School. Their daughter, in sixth grade at the time, returned home on November 21, 2022, feeling sick and injured after participating in what was called an “endurance day.”
According to Shana Kummer, an aide informed students that all sixth-grade classes would be punished due to a broken sign in the boys’ locker room. The Kummers’ daughter reported doing 400 pushups and experiencing nausea and chest pain. After the session, she woke up at night unable to move her arms due to muscle pain.
The Kummers began investigating the incident and raised concerns about the treatment of their child and other students. “We want children to know that what was done to them was wrong, that their rights were violated,” said Jared Kummer.
The students were given options for endurance activities. They chose a more difficult exercise plan, which involved doing sets of push-ups and sprinting across the gym. This totaled 405 push-ups and 34 wind sprints in just 30 minutes. The aide reportedly pointed to trash cans, indicating that some students had vomited during the exercises.
Following the incident, South Sevier Middle School and the Sevier School District conducted an investigation. On December 7, 2022, they announced that “endurance days” would no longer occur, though the announcement did not specify what had happened.
Jared Kummer stated, “This event is just the tip of the iceberg.” The district confirmed a formal complaint regarding corporal punishment and recommended eliminating endurance days entirely. They required the principal to guide teachers to foster a positive environment and ensure that corporal punishment would not be used.
The Kummers noted their concern over the legality of corporal punishment in Utah. “There doesn’t seem to be much going on there,” Jared Kummer expressed.
After hiring an attorney, the Kummers viewed surveillance footage from the incident. They described it as consistent with their daughter’s account, showing students struggling and not receiving adequate breaks. The video indicated that water breaks were given only after students completed over 200 push-ups.
Jared Kummer emphasized the harm in punishing students through exercise. He called for transparency from the district about the use of endurance days as punishment in the past.