LEESBURG, Va. (DC News Now) -- There's controversy in Northern Virginia after a teacher at a Loudoun County high school had students pass around a cotton stem during a Black history lesson. The principal is apologizing and the NAACP is now involved. 47 new Fairfax County Police Department officers graduate Loudoun County NAACP President Pastor Michelle Thomas said the lesson one week ago was insensitive and parents have reached out to her saying their kids were humiliated. "It was very, embarrassing for those students and not easy to talk about at all," Thomas said. On Dec. 5, students in a dual enrollment U.S. history class were told to pass around a stalk of cotton. The college-level course was full of juniors and seniors at Riverside High School. Thomas calls it "curriculum violence," where you have the curriculum that's teaching about the cotton gin, that's teaching about enslavement. "But there's something so disconnected and something, that causes harm," he said. Thomas said it happened across multiple sections of the class, having kids relive a traumatic experience. "Some students in different classes made jokes. You know, at the African-American students, it was absolutely humiliating for those students," Thomas said. ‘Owl be fine’: Injured owl rescued in Stafford County In a letter to parents of kids in that class Thursday, Principal Doug Anderson apologized to parents for the late notification after he said he accidentally only sent an apology to students Wednesday. I wanted to make you aware of an incident that occurred in your student’s class last week. I first must apologize for the late notification. I sent a message yesterday but accidentally only sent it to students. My Administrators and I were made aware of a lesson that included students handling a piece of cotton. The lesson invoked uncomfortable feelings in some students. We recognize that lessons of this nature may cause students to feel any number of emotions. In addition, some students in the class may have used the situation as a way to act in an insensitive manner. We will discuss the incident with the students and members of our DEIA Team in the near future. We are also addressing this issue in accordance with School Board policies as we endeavor to be better prepared in the future. I share this with you because we take matters that involve our students’ safety, both physically and emotionally, seriously. I am sorry to have to share this with you, but I thought it was important that you hear from me. This is not what we are trying to accomplish in our classrooms, and we will endeavor to do better. Every individual is valued in Loudoun County Public Schools. Our Administrative Team will work closely with our classroom teachers, school counselors, and our Unified Mental Health Team to best support students who were involved as needed during this time. Loudoun County Public Schools is dedicated to creating a safe and inclusive learning environment for all students Principal Doug Anderson Thomas said the whole school should have been notified. "You don't just take one group in the corner when you've done something to affect so many people," Thomas said.