(UPDATE, SEPTEMBER 1 @ 12:26 pm) The woman who made the post responded to my message on Saturday night at 11:18 p.m.
She says that she did respond to my initial Facebook message and claimed that I "didn't accept it."
She then said:
You can't go to the school a day or more AFTER they get called out for this kind of stuff and expect it to still be there at that time. But then you lied about me not messaging you too so I guess you are part of the problem. There were several girls that verified this WAS the case at the posting time. Maybe you should talk to some of them instead of the people committing the autrocity?
As for her claim that I did not accept her initial response, this screenshot shows that her only response to me was the one she sent on Saturday night:
She declined to provide contact information for any of the girls that she claims saw litter boxes.
If anyone has any credible evidence or photos of cat litter boxes "installed" in bathrooms at North Middle School - or any Great Falls school - please get in touch with me at david.sherman@krtv.com.
(1st REPORT, AUGUST 30, 2024 @ 1:09 pm) Contrary to a rumor being spread on social media, North Middle School in Great Falls has not "installed" cat litter boxes in bathrooms.
A Facebook post by a Great Falls woman on Thursday, August 29, 2024, claimed that the school had placed litter boxes in girls' bathroom for use by teen girls.
She claimed that a co-worker's daughter was "crying after walking in and seeing two girls crouched over the cat box going to the bathroom!"
Among the responses to her post:
- When you all catch me homeschooling I hope you understand.
- I can't believe you are just finding out about this. This was a thing last school year as well.
- I have heard stories about this, but was skeptical. Now it’s pretty clear they were right!
- This should be a top local news story! Someone with proof needs to call the local news station.
KRTV was tagged by a person in the comments, and another person commented that "the media" needs to look into this.
I sent a message to the woman on Friday morning asking for contact information for the co-worker, but have not received a response at this point.
As of Friday afternoon, the original post has either been deleted, or made non-public.
KRTV also contacted Great Falls Public Schools superintendent Heather Hoyer on Friday.
Hoyer replied in an email to KRTV:
It has come to our attention that there is a rumor circulating regarding the presence of kitty litter in our school bathrooms. We want to clarify that this rumor is entirely false.
There is no truth to the claim, and such items are not present in any of our facilities. This is a modern-day "urban legend" that began in 2021 and has impacted schools across the US and Canada since then. It periodically resurfaces, usually around the start of school.
We ask that everyone in our community refrain from spreading unfounded rumors by perpetuating this on social media. Rumors like this can cause unnecessary concern, redirect resources away from students, and distract from the important work we do in providing a safe and supportive environment. If you have any questions or concerns, please reach out directly to the school administration for accurate information. We would like to thank our citizens who have worked with our schools already.
Thank you for your understanding and cooperation.
As Hoyer noted, this rumor has sprung up several times in recent years across the country, including in Montana last year.
In August 2023, Montana superintendent of public instruction Elsie Arntzen claimed that there was "evidence" of litter boxes in Montana schools.
However, an investigation by Montana Free Press was unable to find any evidence or credible allegations of litter boxes in any public school anywhere in Montana.
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According to MFP, Lance Melton - the director of the Montana School Boards Association - said at the time that his organization was unaware of “any instance whatsoever where any school district in the state has contemplated doing this.”
The rumors of kitty litter in schools is believed to have originated with people who believed that some students were "identifying" as cats, and that schools were trying to accommodate their "feline needs."
