High school seminar quickly went south after students asked to submit questions anonymously

HOUSTON (KTRK) -- "Miley Cyrus for President"

"Hitler was a good guy"

"Vaping saved my life"

These are part of a short list of messages we can actually put on air.

Just imagine reading them, along with dozens of racially and sexually offensive messages, from theater-sized screens at an assembly of 14-years-olds.

"It was a bunch of kids trying to get attention," said senior Rachel Robertson. "It's just like the crazier stuff they can put up there, the better."

As a freshman assembly at Memorial High two weeks ago, students were invited to send in questions and comments, which would be anonymously projected on the big screen. It was supposed to be a fun way for students, faculty, and administrators to get to know each other. Now the principal is apologizing, saying, in part:

"This was a teachable moment for all of us. We assumed the best of our students, and when some of them let us down, we responded. As I told freshman parents in the email to them that day, raising up this next generation of young people, especially in the age of social media, is a daunting task, but together, we can make a difference."

"They had an opportunity to type up a bunch of ridiculous things that were going to go up on the big screen and they took it," said one parent. "They are in the ninth grade, what else were they going to do?"

"Heartbreaking, I guess. Cruel. I just didn't think that would be something that most of the kids would say," said another parent.

No students have been disciplined, but the freshman class has been required to attend meetings to discuss what happened.

Below is the entire letter sent to parents: