SHAWANO, WI (WTAQ) – A school in Shawano, which hosted a traveling basketball clinic involving a coach arrested last week for child sex crimes, were shocked to learn about it.
The clinic on October 13 involving Ohio-based Pro Shot Shooting System was actually the second one at Sacred Heart Catholic School this year.
“We first hosted the camp last spring, and for a second time last week,” says Sacred Heart principal Elisha Wagenson. “We originally were made aware of Pro Shot on a recommendation of one of our coaches who attended the camp in a different city.”
Wagenson says they did check into the group.
“We reviewed the information about the company that was available to us and then proceeded with an invitation to have the camp here,” says Wagenson.
The principal says there are more steps they take whenever the school hosts an event.
“We always are concerned with the safety of our students, participants and our campus grounds. Because of that we have certain protocols in place called ‘Safe Environment’,” says Wagenson. “In this case, we had exceeded the standards for supervision by our own Safe Environment trained and background checked volunteers. So we have done due diligence in the planning of this event to ensure the safety of participants,”
Wagenson adds they first learned about what took place with basketball coach Nicholas Bennett on Friday from the parents of the 13-year-old boy and law enforcement.
The 23-year-old Bennett has been charged with using a computer to facilitate a sex crime and attempted child enticement. Bennett lives in Portland, Oregon and is being held on a $100,000 cash bond.
Wagenson says they will review their protocols again to ensure something like this doesn’t happen again.
