# Talk:Port Charlotte High School

I don't understand why the club isn't listed on the school's website and I'm not sure where to find proof of this. I've searched for evidence in news articles but all I can find about the club and the school is the initial drama surrounding it when it originally came to the school. I'm a student at the school and there are many posters advertising the club. Anyone have any tips on how to find evidence?--RaskBunzzz (talk) 04:38, 26 September 2020 (UTC)

@RaskBunzzz: Good job updating that. I think they literally restarted that right after I wrote the section, likely to avoid being seen as anti-LGBT. (I kinda wish I wouldn't have written the section... Although I never laughed at any of them as that would be mean, I was one of the students that was against the club, and that position hasn't changed. But just so this doesn't go into an off-topic mess as to why, I don't hate anybody, I'm not afraid of anybody, and I certainly do NOT advocate being cruel to anybody. I'm part of the religious right (specifically, I am an Independent Baptist), a group misunderstood by much of the outside world, increasingly so thanks to idiotic groups like Westboro). PCHS-NJROTC (Messages)Have a blessed day. 01:13, 13 March 2021 (UTC)

I know the article says "Charley, Frances, and Ivan" but that author was in error. School was closed for Hurricane Jeanne, not Ivan. Hurricane Ivan hit the western panhandle and was very far away from Charlotte County when it passed by in the gulf. It did make a loop and reentered on the Atlantic Coast, but by then it was a very weak tropical depression. Second article does mention schools are reopening after Hurricane Jeanne. 

 50.88.229.139 (talk) 06:59, 27 September 2023 (UTC)
My bad. Raskuly (talk) 04:09, 31 October 2023 (UTC)

While other extracurricular activities are given their own section because of accomplishments, the GSA's section is nearly all about the Westboro Baptist Church coming to the school and causing it to be temporarily shuttered. I think it would be better to move this dark incident to the "history" section, while still noting that the club is now active at the school. Raskuly (talk) 23:38, 29 October 2023 (UTC)

The reason for the emphasis is because the fact that WBC protested it and it disappeared shortly after is the only real reason it's noteworthy. Schools all over the place have GSA, and there's not much else about this particular GSA floating around in reliable sources. One could argue the same about the sports, ROTC, the band, etc, but those also get mentioned due to coverage in reliable sources and awards they have received. Also, it wasn't a temporary disbandment, it's more like there was a temporary revival of it, but to my knowledge it is gone again due to current FLDOE policies on LGBT in schools. At any rate, there's no mention of it on the school site anymore. One thing that's on the back of my mind is to reach out to a connection I have in administration at Charlotte County Public Schools who might know of reliable sources (and possibly even create some primary sources) that can be used to bring the three school articles to FA status, the issue for me is time. PCHS-NJROTC (Messages)Have a blessed day. 00:10, 30 October 2023 (UTC)
This shows the GSA still being active. It is on the second page. Looking at the clubs with their own sections again, the band, Model United Nations, & NJROTC have accomplishments to their name while again, the section on GSA is primarily about its temporary disbandment. I guess the question could be asked if these accomplishments by the other clubs are noteworthy enough to be given their own subsections, but if that is something you think should be debated then I think it should go in its own section on the talk page. Raskuly (talk) 04:06, 31 October 2023 (UTC)
So then it is active again... Oddly, I think this was recreated as a result of the mention on Wikipedia, as in someone read about the scandal on here and decided to recreate it... I hate to be blunt about it, but the only news (and therefore the only mention on Wikipedia) that a GSA is going to generate in the current political climate
is going to be bad news, except now it's more likely to be a group like Moms for Liberty protesting. Argh, I wish I would have never mentioned it in the article, I created a reason for people to fight (which is ironic because the traditional idea behind GSA, as I understand, was to encourage people to NOT clash). ;) If you remove the mention I wouldn't be offended. PCHS-NJROTC (Messages)Have a blessed day. 15:21, 31 October 2023 (UTC)

I don't want to remove the mention of the 2005 GSA incident, I just want to move it to the "History" section. I think it is notable that a hate group came to the school and caused trouble, but the incident being the only reason it is being mentioned alongside the extended sections about the other clubs seems odd to me, that is all. I even expanded it earlier to note that someone with a Wikipedia page, Asher Levine, was the leader of the GSA at the time. Raskuly (talk) 05:36, 1 November 2023 (UTC)
Fair enough. I reverted the removal but put moved it as proposed. I titled the section "Westboro Baptist Church protest" instead of just "hate group protest" because there's hundreds of hate groups out there, most of which have zero notability, but WBC is well known. By the way, I know this is off-topic but I'm almost certain Fred Phelps is in hell, and those losers have no business calling themselves "baptist." People may believe what they wish, but I believe he is there alongside Hitler and a lot of Ku Klux Klan members, miserably burning for eternity. PCHS-NJROTC (Messages)Have a blessed day. 13:22, 4 November 2023 (UTC)

I appreciate all of the effort put into this article recently, but am I missing something in the provided source regarding the 2021 graduation ceremony? That source says nothing about the graduation ceremony being held at the sports park due to COVID, but it does mention the virtual graduation that happened the year prior due to COVID. The ceremony was traditionally held at Lee Civic Center in Fort Myers, it seems to me the sports park is a more ideal location anyway as it is in Port Charlotte not far from the school (I distinctly remember opining about the graduation being held down there when I graduated). PCHS-NJROTC (Messages)Have a blessed day. 00:15, 30 October 2023 (UTC)

I reworded it to better fit the circumstances. I could've sworn that the source previously stated that it was directly because of the COVID-19 pandemic--and that was certainly the vibe I got while graduating especially given the limited guests and outdoor setting--so instead I've mentioned it was held in spite of the pandemic and a reversal from the previous year's virtual graduation.
Also, it looks as if the class of 2022 also graduated at Charlotte Sports Park while the class of 2023 graduated at Charlotte Harbor Event Center in Punta Gorda. I know Wikipedia is not for speculation, but between us I do believe the change in venue from 2022 to 2023 is related to the ending of pandemic restrictions. Raskuly (talk) 03:58, 31 October 2023 (UTC)
The move from the sports park to the Charlotte Harbor Event Center is more than likely a result of the sports park being badly damaged by Hurricane Ian. Outdoor graduations aren't unusual, Venice and North Port High School have a long tradition of having their graduation ceremonies on the school football field. PCHS-NJROTC (Messages)Have a blessed day. 15:23, 31 October 2023 (UTC)
I completely forgot about the damage to the sports park probably because I hardly go to that part of town, but I was just sharing that with you because you're a local. But since you do mention it, it does look like the Charlotte Harbor Event Center got off pretty well from Ian, while as you probably know much of Fort Myers didn't. So I'd have to find information saying that it was originally going to be held at the sports park but then it wasn't because of Ian, but I don't think that matters.
Like I said, I edited the section to just talk about how it was a return to in-person graduation following the 2020 virtual graduations. Raskuly (talk) 05:40, 1 November 2023 (UTC)
Fort Myers really got hit hard, my girlfriend lives there. But she did okay through it. I was a main cook for an elementary school in North Port when it happened (I do something else now for the same employer now, more $$$) and because that school was a shelter I had to work during the hurricane. That was an interesting experience to say the least. Englewood and North Port also got hit hard, but not as bad as Lee County. PCHS-NJROTC (Messages)Have a blessed day. 13:25, 4 November 2023 (UTC)

I was curious as to what other's thoughts would be on including mention of the 2008 sexual assault charges on PCHS band instructor Dale Bowe. As part of my efforts to dig into PCHS history I discovered this incident. I'm unsure if the case was ever closed (or at least publicly) since Bowe committed suicide before his first court appearance. This also counts against including the incident because it might be distasteful to include mention of sexual assault charges against a deceased man who may or may not have committed the crime. Raskuly (talk) 18:31, 3 April 2024 (UTC)

Generally, these kinds of events aren't that unique to a given school (or any organization) and their occurrence is not a major event in the overall study of the school's history unless it led to some kind of major change like an unusual policy, the naming of a room (like a memorial), or something similar, or of the event itself was notable. It's also about looking at it as a matter of appropriate content and whether including it falls within the scope of the article, and if so, then making sure it's properly sourced. Whether including it is "distasteful" is a matter of perspective and really shouldn't be a factor in choosing to include it or not. In other words, context matters. In this case, I don't think it really helps the reader have a better understanding of the school to mention it. The history section should focus on the development of the school itself and the main events that have shaped its current identity: creation, new buildings and additions, renovations, programs, etc. Looking at the history section right now, while it is well-sourced, quite a bit is trivial since much of it focuses on details of recent events that were not unique to the school, particularly the mentions of COVID and Hurricane Ian which both contain several details about the general area rather than the school itself. Of course those events should be mentioned, but details about them need to have a purpose related to the topic, which is the school. --JonRidinger (talk) 19:17, 3 April 2024 (UTC)
I appreciate the input and I do agree that more work should be done to tie the COVID-19 pandemic and Hurricane Ian directly to the school. Currently, I'd be on board removing mention of the pandemic from the history section all-together as there was nothing that I know of that was unique about the pandemic's effects on the school. I'd still want to include the first in-person graduation after the pandemic in some capacity since it was the first high school in the county to do it, though at the very least the picture of the graduation (which full disclosure--I took) could remain as a decent addition to the article.
As for Ian, I tried to tie it in better to the school specifically by mentioning the effects on the football team but it could still be improved and expanded upon. Raskuly (talk) 20:14, 4 April 2024 (UTC)
@Raskuly: Dale Bowe was added to the article a long time ago (I believe by an IP editor), and consensus was to remove him when this article went through GA assessment years ago. Calling the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission's hotline isn't a minimum one hour hold for no reason. Sadly, these kind of sexual abuse cases (and their respective news coverage) are a dime a dozen, affecting just about any institution or organization significant enough to meet WP:GNG. Someone within the organization does something ridiculous, may or may not get arrested, organization does its best to cover it up... It's sad, but it's reality. This topic comes up a lot on articles for religious organizations, because those who are opposed to the organizations for whatever reason use it to attack the organization (hey look, ABCXYZ Bible Institute is run by perverts!), but it does come up in articles for other institutions (like Port Charlotte High School) too, and I always remove it per WP:NOTNEWS unless there is a really phenomenal argument with multiple sources as to why a particular incident is more notable than the countless others that happen all the time.
I don't want this to discourage you at all from any work you intend to do, but I am planning for a major overhaul of the article, to expand and model this article after some of our featured school articles. I intend to do the same for Charlotte High and Lemon Bay High, and as an added bonus add some information about Port Charlotte Middle/Junior High School's history on the Charlotte County Public Schools article since it is a candidate for inclusion on the National Register of Historic Places (the state wants to nominate it to the National Park Service, but the school district is resisting those efforts). It's a matter of having time/will to do it; quality content takes a lot of time and effort to produce, something I have been short of for quite some time (I have pictures I've taken for the Commons that I still haven't uploaded). Hope you did okay in the storm.  PCHS-NJROTC (Messages)Have a blessed day. 00:13, 16 October 2024 (UTC)


### Port Charlotte High School
I've listed this article for peer review because this article, which has already been assessed as a GA, has been improved significantly by various contributors, including User:Raskuly, myself, and several others. My goal is to create content worthy of being a featured article, not just here but on pages across the encyclopedia (I plan on also working on Charlotte High School (Punta Gorda, Florida), Lemon Bay High School, a new article I am working on for North Port High School, and Pensacola Christian College, then expand beyond schools to other institutions, historical stuctures, and other topics entirely. I think we've come a long way with the Port Charlotte High article, the only thing I think that might make it better would be some more well-referenced information on the school's athletics and a historical photo. I would love some constructive criticism in order to get this article (and others) from good to great. 
Thanks, PCHS Pirate Alumnus (talk) 20:57, 20 November 2025 (UTC)