Morgan Park High School students plan walkout over football coach Chris James

Morgan Park High School students plan to walk out of class at Tuesday morning to protest the removal of football coach Chris James and other changes to their football program.

Parents and students from the school posted their walkout plans to social media Monday, writing in part, "Our children deserve better! Our student-athletes deserve better! And our community deserves answers!"

According to the post, after the school's football team was eliminated from state playoffs, they have since been "denied the opportunity to compete in the Chicago Prep Bowl," causing them to potentially miss three more games.

"The school administration has attributed this decision to a coaching transition. However, a message attributed to the head coach disputes the principal's explanation and states that he was removed from his position," the post continues.

The post also claims the students are being denied access to videos of their games which could impact their college recruiting and scholarship chances.

In the call for the walkout, parents of Morgan Park students are asking for a review of the decision to cancel Prep Bowl participation, immediate access to all footage of games for college recruiting, transparency and accountability for school leaders and the opportunity for the student-athletes to be heard by the administration. 

The Morgan Park High School Alumni Association also posted a statement about the situation, writing in part that they are "deeply concerned by the recent developments surrounding the leadership of our football program and the decision to withdraw our student-athletes from the upcoming Prep Bowl competition."

"For nine years, Coach Chris James and his staff have built a competitive and respected football program that has brought tremendous pride to Morgan Park High School and our community," the statement continues, noting the program and Coach James were involved in helping student-athletes pursue higher education through scholarships and mentoring the young men on the team.

"We recognize the responsibility of school leadership to make decisions in the best interests of our students and school community," the statement concludes. "We also believe those decisions should be accompanied by fairness, transparency and meaningful communication with those impacted. Our students deserve athletic programs that are supported, sustainable and positioned for continued success."

The walkout is scheduled for 10:45 a.m.