Message from the School Board

At a recent board meeting, concerns were raised about several topics. The Board of Directors would like to respond to those concerns.

Many of the items raised in the public meetings have been addressed in the recent posting of the Frequently Asked Questions page on our website. Topics like critical race theory, the adoption of a comprehensive sexual health education curriculum, and communication regarding facility changes and processes for accessing gender-neutral spaces can be found on the FAQ page.

We do hold a professional expectation that teachers will remain unbiased in their classroom instruction – especially when addressing controversial topics. That said, our teachers will continue to engage in exercises to develop critical thinking skills and will examine controversial topics. We also want to make it clear to our community that specific concerns raised have been addressed and resolved. The District takes – and has taken – all appropriate and necessary steps when dealing with personnel matters, and out of respect for the dignity of its employees does not share the specifics or comment on particular personnel matters. If there are future concerns regarding individual classroom conversations, we encourage parents to reach out to that classroom teacher as they are the best source for what has occurred. The next step would be to speak to the building principal.

The District is committed to continuing to increase and improve our communication efforts with our families and the community. Part of this effort is to respond to questions promptly, host listening post conversations, add to the FAQ web page, encourage committee participation, add new communication tools, and explore adding a communications specialist.

Meridian School Board