The Ketchikan High School pep club’s “country” theme, for which some students dressed like cowboys for a basketball game against Metlakatla, wasn’t intended to be “racially provocative” but it had a negative effect that was “predictable and should have been prevented,” according to an investigation of the incident.

The investigation, released last Friday, was conducted by the Ketchikan Gateway Borough School District following a Feb. 5 game between the Ketchikan Kings and the Metlakatla Chiefs.

The report from the borough school board and district administration said the high school pep club h...