A Peoria Unified high school teacher singled out by two board members who attempted to refuse her a contract is speaking out regarding accusations of improper teaching that occurred during a human physiology class late last year.
The issue nearly blocked the district’s 4,000 workers from getting new contracts after one parent made accusations against the teacher.
When Liberty High School science teacher Holly Webb got wind of online chatter calling for her firing, she was speechless.
Initially, the chatter stemmed from accusations of sexually explicit teachings in her classroom and then later in a speech by parent Wendy Van Wie during an open comment section at the March 9 governing board meeting, in which she vaguely accused Webb of such teachings in her Anatomy & Physiology class, where her daughter was a student.
The public comment included a threat pointed at Webb and her teachings.
“Holly Webb, I hope you’re listening and you’re lucky I didn’t get a hold of you, because the disgusting, vile word that she said in front of my daughter, my daughter cannot unhear, she cannot unlearn, she cannot unknow what she heard from an adult,” Van Wie said.
The word she would not say publicly was “clitoris,” a part of the female reproductive system.
A few days after the March 9 meeting, governing board member Heather Rooks took to Twitter with a video replaying parts of Van Wie’s speech, with accusations running across the bottom of the video claiming Webb told female students to “play with their clits.” The video continues, stating Webb asked her male students if they “were aroused.” The video concludes, stating Webb said in class that “dolphins are bisexual and have clitorises and know how to play.”
The video reached thousands of people and left Webb ready to defend herself, who said the accusations are patently false and she never said those things.
“Posting slanderous lies on social media to further along a political agenda is not in the best interest of the students, teachers, or education as a whole. The accusations made by this parent are blatant lies and are outright vulgar and disgusting,” Webb said. “The claims that students corroborated the story that I said any of these things is also a blatant lie.”
Educational Standards
Webb taught Introduction to Human Anatomy and Physiology to Liberty High School students until she was transferred to a different school in the district as a result of the incident. The class is an elective science course for students interested in the medical field, and is an upper level course that follows standards set by Maricopa Community College and the state of Arizona. The course is considered dual enrollment, meaning students can gain high school and college credit for successfully completing it.
Students and parents are both aware of the material being taught in the course, as it is in the course syllabus signed by both the student and the parent at the beginning of the course, it is posted on the district learning platform called Moodle, and is in the district-approved textbook.
Webb said PUSD human resources confirmed Van Wie and her daughter signed the syllabus acknowledgment form stating they had read the course rules and guidelines and agreed to abide by them, as well as that they discussed and understood them.
As a Human Anatomy and Physiology and medical science teacher, Webb is required, per the standards, to educate students on the human reproductive body systems. For the unit in question, the standards require the educator define the structural anatomy and function of both the male and female human reproductive tracts, fertilization, and the connection of the reproductive system to other body systems.
By using the proper medical terminology and answering student questions directly and professionally at all times, students are taught the anatomy and physiology of all body systems in the human body, including the reproductive system.
Webb said she did all that, and that an investigation conducted by the district corroborates it.
“It is frustrating that I correctly taught the material as the standards mandate but due to ignorance and the inability to understand the content, I am was accused of educating children on sex education verses human anatomy and physiology,” she said.
The Lesson In Question
As Webb tells it, the lesson in question was the first day of the chapter the on the human reproductive system, Dec. 15, 2022, and the subject of the lesson that day was the female reproductive system.
Up to this point, the class had learned about other chapters in the textbook, ranging from the nervous to the endocrine systems.
Webb said it can be delicate with subject matter, but when “the jokes start flying, you shut them down.”
During the class, Webb instructed her students on the parts of the female reproductive system and their individual functions.
At one point, Webb noticed Van Wie’s daughter had been texting during the lecture, which is not allowed in class, so she was given a verbal warning to put the phone away.
“I think this is an important point because she wasn’t listening to the content within the lecture,” Webb said. “She was breaking a school rule, defying my verbal warning, and was distracted, which prevented her from comprehending my lecture fully, thus leading to the incorrect conclusions and quotes that she sent to her mom.”
Moving into the last topic of the lecture, Webb said, “everyone’s favorite, drum roll, please ...”
The next slide showed a diagram of the clitoris.
“I try to use humor to break the ice,” Webb said.
Chatter among students bubbled up, and one student asked if humans are the only animals that have clitorises. Webb responded that all female mammals have a clitoris but, for example, a cat has a clitoris but does not use its function as humans or primates would, and it varies depending on the mammal. She used dolphins as an example, which are known to be “more playful and sexual” animals
Webb said hands flew up, but she cut it off.
“The students mumbled and then we moved along,” Webb said.
She finished the lecture and the class ended.
Webb said she did not say anything accused of her in Rooks’ tweet.
Not long after the lecture, the Liberty principal came to her class and told her to go to the district administrative center, located in Glendale.
Within hours of the class ending, social media posts had been flying about Webb teaching so-called sexually explicit content in the classroom. At the district administrative center, she was shown printouts of numerous social media posts accusing her of teaching material without parental consent including that dolphins are bisexual, which Webb said she did not say.
Many of the accusations were posted on the Facebook page West Valley Parents Uniting Against Critical Race Theory, administered by two-time former Peoria Unified governing board candidate Devon Updegraff-Day. The group West Valley Parents Uniting is led by board members Updegraff-Day, Rooks and Van Wie.
The day of the lecture, Webb was then put on administrative leave and an investigation began.
She was shocked but she said she told administrators the truth about what happened.
“I was relieved because I knew I was innocent and didn’t do anything wrong,” she said. “I taught what they wanted me to teach, how they wanted me to teach it, using the materials they provided to me, so I’m relieved this was the issue a parent had. (Administrators) seemed shocked that I was relieved, but I knew I had done nothing wrong.”
Investigation
Arizona state law says due process must be provided for certified staff in cases of investigation.
During the investigation, Webb was put on paid leave and prohibited from talking to anyone about it except for a lawyer. She was not allowed to talk to other Peoria Unified employees, parents or students, and was prohibited from going on school grounds or district events.
Peoria Independent obtained the investigation through a public record request, which included interview transcripts — some hand-written, some typed — but no conclusion statement about the findings. It includes interviews of Webb and nine students. Webb claimed about 50 students were interviewed.
Van Wie claims students interviewed during the investigation say that “sexually explicit statements were verbally spoken in her class.” Van Wie did not respond to specific questions about her accusations, but sent a statement to Peoria Independent.
“I wanted to make sure the school knew what had been spoken in her class with students, who are children, and make sure they were proactive in protecting the minds of our students and their innocence,” she stated. “How can we have confidence in the district, when what they decided to do, when it came to protecting our children and their innocent minds, their resolution was moving Ms. Webb within the district to an elementary school with even younger children?”
Webb, who had two Anatomy and Physiology classes among others, began administrative leave on Dec. 15, 2022, and returned to the classroom at a different site on Jan. 19, 2023.
District officials said due process has been given in the complaint investigation of Webb and the district will continue to follow due process with future complaints.
PUSD spokeswoman Danielle Airey said she could not speak on Webb’s investigation but that the district takes all concerns and complaints from students, parents and staff seriously and begin a process to investigate each one.
“When there is concern over something regarding a staff member at a school, our human resources team works alongside the principal to conduct the investigation. This includes hearing from all necessary voices, including the staff member, to determine if the concern is true. If so, we go through a progressive discipline process,” Airey said.
Webb is no longer teaching at Liberty High School where she was also the schools’ Medical Club advisor, providing after-school hours and resources to students interested in the medical field.
As a disciplinary move, she was removed from that position and is no longer teaching that content. The district considers this disciplinary action but would not go into deeper details.
Webb said due process has taken place, denied the accusations made against her and that her content was linked to educational standards.
“The decision to move schools was not because I am guilty or because I am hiding or running, but rather because the district, principal, and I decided to take action to pre-emptively diffuse the situation,” Webb said. “Although my background and degrees make me highly qualified to teach biology, human physiology and medical science at the high school level, my personal hopes were to move forward peacefully by taking the high road. I wanted peace for my family and for myself. However, I will no longer sit back and be accused of saying awful, offensive things to children without clearing my name by telling the truth.”
‘Irresponsible’ Actions
Over a series of weeks following the class discussion, accusations flew against Webb that went all the way up to the school board and almost had wide-ranging effects.
About two months after the Webb investigation completed, Peoria Unified governing board members Heather Rooks and Rebecca Hill at the March 9 governing board meeting requested Webb be removed from a list of employee contracts set to be considered for approval.
Their motion was denied, but the two board members voted against the initial motion, nearly scuttling the issuance of contracts to about 4,000 employees that would have included salary and benefits for the 2023-24 school year and led to the unemployment of those employees by mid-summer.
School board members, including Rooks and Hill, had been made aware of Webb’s return to the classroom after the investigation concluded more than a month before the March 9 meeting.
Neither Rooks nor Hill responded to multiple inquires from Peoria Independent.
Over several weeks, former teacher union president Trina Berg watched as the drama played out on social media and at public Peoria Unified school board meetings.
Berg, a PUSD educator of 23 years who currently teaches science, said it is unconscionable there were two votes that would have violated law and policy, as well as cost every employee their contract because of board members’ and parents’ political agendas, and their desire to oust Webb.
Not liking policy, procedure, or the outcome is no reason to attack and accuse people of things on social media, Berg said.
“It’s irresponsible to use social media to blast educators when the full story is not being told. It can damage reputations, potentially cost positions or promotions, but most of all it is going to force educators out of the profession,” Berg said. “What they have an issue with is policy, and they just don’t like the outcome because it seems the only outcome they deem worthy is a public dismissal. The fact is policy is being followed. Investigations are being made, and it’s clear to me that after the investigations, the allegations were found to be false or greatly exaggerated. HR followed policy, and they have their reasons beyond the investigation for moving staff or not.”
Webb said the whole experience has created a negative impact on the entire educational community and has caused her fellow teachers to fear lies told by parents and students that can determine their fate, rather than the truth prevailing.
Webb said her experience is becoming more common as political agendas have been influencing pubic education.
“Parents are a part of the educational team, but slander and defamation should not be entertained and educators should be protected by the truth once due process has taken place,” Webb said. “One parent’s lies, no matter how many board members they politically align with, should be investigated. But once proven as defamation, that parent or board member should have repercussions rather than praise.”
Philip Haldiman can be reached at phaldiman@iniusa.org, or on Twitter @philiphaldiman. We’d like to invite our readers to submit their civil comments, pro or con, on this issue. Email AZOpinions@iniusa.org.
Meet Philip Haldiman is an award-winning journalist who most recently took first place for investigative reporting in 2023 from Arizona Newspapers Association. He joined Independent Newsmedia, Inc., USA, in 2015, covering Sun City West his first year. Since 2016, he has covered the city of Peoria. Prior to coming to INI, he was a reporter with The Arizona Republic for seven years, covering numerous cities throughout the Valley. Before that, he was a freelance writer.
Community: Haldiman spearheads the Peoria Independent Hometown Heroes Awards program, honoring local individuals and businesses that give back to the community. He has hosted local candidate forums over the years and is a member of the Society of Professional Journalists. Haldiman also served as a member of the Journalism Program Community Advisory Board at Glendale Community College. Outside journalism, Haldiman served as a member of the city of Peoria Complete Count Committee for the Census, 2019-2020. Lastly, he has served as a member of his HOA governing board since 2021.
Education: Arizona State University with a BA in Journalism and Mass Communications and a BA in Theater.
Random Fact: Haldiman is a fourth-generation Arizonan as well as wrote and produced an autobiographical comic book about his time spent in Hollywood and his life as a cult film star.
Hobbies: He enjoys hiking Arizona’s mountainous landscapes and is currently working on a play for the stage.
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