Armand Tatum, or commonly known as Coach Tatum, has served multiple schools, including Walnut Hills High School, and his current, or now past, position at Western Hills University High School (WHUHS) since 2013. Coach Tatum has been a father figure to the young men attending the joint football team of WHUHS & Gilbert A. Dater High School. He's also made an impact on his students that he's taught , the communities he's served, and many others that have been able to have the opportunity to be in his company. He has taken on the task of bringing about immense growth in the students and athletes of the high schools he has occupied. A majority of these kids have come from broken homes, had barely any true role models, and felt as if they've been set up for failure since the beginning. But, Coach Tatum has been a representation of hope for our school and students. He inspired our peers to find a purpose in sports, but also encouraged them to prioritize and succeed in their academics. He was able to actually bring last season's CPS champion win for the Western Hills football team, which hasn't been accomplished by the school for nearly a decade. Aside from athletics, Tatum has been an active supporter and helper for his local neighborhoods. He has given back through participating in fundraisers, feeding his community through organizations such as Grandma's Kitchen, and even serves as protection for his nearby church. Tatum has been able to form rare, genuine connections through his positive energy and eagerness for those around him to prosper. He's touched so many hearts that has moved us to put in this effort of attempting to get the board to retract their hasty decision to remove him from his place in the CPS district. He gives a sense of comfortability, compassion, and understanding, that is necessary in our schools for refining our children's, and maybe even your children's, behavior and success. Recently, a video has been circulating, that contains the gruesome stripping of a teenage boy who had been on the football team of WHUHS. This is greatly outrageous and unacceptable, all members aware of the situation in our school have acknowledged this. Those who had committed the assault of the victim have been condemned with expulsion, which we all, as at least those of the schools that contained these boys, believe was well deserved, and justice will be further pursued for all other issues found in the investigation. We can not imagine the anger the victim, his family, and even the public is feeling, and on behalf of the school, we are beyond apologetic. The seriousness of this will not be undermined or disregarded. Toxic behaviors and normalization of horrible events such as these, especially in majorly men's environments, is exactly what Coach Tatum has worked so intensely to avoid. I first hand watched him become upset because I, being a football manager at that, attempted to carry a simple water jug, because he believed it was his team's responsibility to make sure all equipment and accessories were where they needed to go. He treats his football crew as if they were his own kids, held in high respect, but along with that demands they reach the steep expectations he's set. He does not attempt to hide things, or let things slide because they could possibly be in his favor. He does not cheat to get the outcomes he wants. He is very thorough in everything that he does. He is all for taking accountability and making a true change. This kind of incident is not something he could have ever predicted. He always is on top of everything, he monitors and observes his team's members, he teaches them valuable lessons constantly, he makes sure to see if his team is good or needs anything, and etc. But, he also trusted his team with the years of advice he has given, to make the right decisions when he's not looking. And a majority of the time, they are. Like any parent, that's all you can do, and hope your kids come out to be the responsible young leaders you urge them to be. As a student at WHUHS, I, as well as the other youth that has depended on Tatum for all his qualities that have improved our lives, beg the board to reconsider, and for you, the people, to join us in the protest of Coach Tatum's removal. Instead of throwing away an amazing coach, leader, and teacher, please give him solutions and new procedures to carry out if he himself hasn't already gathered any, to prevent anything like this from happening again. By himself he's carried so much guilt and accusation that doesn't even belong to him. We had to make this without his knowledge, because we knew he would attempt to stop us out of shame and, again, guilt. The narratives people have been spewing of him, I hope you, our audience, can research and see are completely false. He's been one of the most positive things that's come from this school, and we cannot afford to let him go. Enough people signing this petition might give us the chance to rebel against this decision, and save not only Coach Tatum's purpose, but our school's spirit as well. He is irreplaceable and a rare soul to find, it will be impossible to find someone as impactful for our school as him. Thank you for your time if you made it this far, please don't forget to sign if possible <33 - Helen Dawit & Western Hills University High School's students, (big thanks to KeOrland Harrison, Joseph Ponce Flores, Aubrey Wright, Zariya Estill, and Breanna Hillman for helping construct this, as well as the rest of the football team.)