Differences between the sexes can be a topic of lively debate, as proved by a handout in a Thomas Worthington High School health class last week.

Differences between the sexes can be a topic of lively debate, as proved by a handout in a Thomas Worthington High School health class last week.

"Appreciating Gender Differences" included a list of the differences and was directed at the male of the species:

"You State Your Needs" vs. "She Makes You Figure Out Her Needs." "You Have to Lead" vs. "She Gets to Follow." "You Think Sex Is Primarily Physical" vs. "She Thinks Sex Is Primarily Emotional."

The handout instructed students to write an essay "stating your beliefs" about how knowing these differences might affect a relationship they have now or in the future.

The handout was part of a "science of sex" unit in teacher Lezlee Levette's health class. Levette said she took the handout from an outdated book to stimulate conversation about how attitudes have changed over the years and "how do these stereotypes affect you in your life."

But it didn't take long for someone to post the list on a social-media site under the heading: "This was given to students by a teacher at Thomas Worthington High School. THIS YEAR."

Respondents on reddit.com complained about teaching students "these assumed truths" and asked where to get "pitchforks."

One poster chastised others for sensationalizing the topic.

Principal Jim Gaskill said the misunderstanding might have occurred because Levette wasn't in class on Friday when a substitute teacher distributed it to students without explaining the context.

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We've heard stories of unruly parents in the past.

District leaders have said such cases are rare, but examples are not hard to find.

Last week, a Reynoldsburg father sprayed mace at two other parents after a yelling match erupted in an elementary-school parking lot. All three were waiting to pick up their kids at the end of the school day.

According to a Reynoldsburg police report, witnesses said two parents pulled into the parking lot of Herbert Mills Elementary on Wednesday afternoon, cutting off the other parent with the mace. That man, we'll call him Dad No. 1, got out of his car and started yelling at the other two, who we'll call Mom and Dad No. 2. Mom and Dad No. 2 also left their vehicles.

The argument escalated, and accusations were flying. Dad No. 1 said Dad No. 2 had a gun, which was not true. Dad No. 2 called Dad No. 1 a word not appropriate for a family newspaper, which prompted Dad No. 1 to mace the other two parents. He then got in his car and drove away.

All three parents have been issued no-trespass warnings and were told not to come back to school property.

• • •

In the past two years, school boards in Canal Winchester, Dublin, Grandview Heights, Hilliard, Pickerington, Upper Arlington, Westerville and Whitehall hired search firms to help them find their new leaders.

So when two school boards recently decided to forgo a firm and name their new school chiefs, we couldn't help but wonder how often that happens.

It's not uncommon, said Tom Ash, director of governmental affairs with the Buckeye Association of School Administrators.

"Some districts, when they are aware that the superintendent will be leaving in a year or so, actually begin to prepare a successor to assume the position," he said in an email.

Here's the thing: There was no formal succession plan in place at Hamilton or Worthington, where boards decided to hire the district's second-in-command to replace outgoing superintendents.

Hamilton Board President Joe Jankowski said the board "canvassed" district staff members who would be eligible to take over for Superintendent Chris Lester, who is retiring in June. They chose assistant superintendent William Morrison to replace Lester.

Meanwhile, the Worthington school board thought that assistant superintendent Trent Bowers was the best candidate to replace Superintendent Thomas Tucker, who is leaving at the end of the school year for a similar position at Princeton schools near Cincinnati.

They were so confident in their choice that they named Bowers as Tucker's successor without a contract. The board is in the middle of contract negotiations with Bowers and expects to vote on a pact on Dec. 15.

Districts can save time and money by skipping a search and going with an in-house candidate, if they have someone in place who knows the culture of the district and its community.

Dispatch Reporter Earl Rinehart contributed to this report.

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