School teachers and counselors would be barred from talking to students about gender identity without parent approval under a new regulation being considered by Francis Howell’s school board.
The regulation is one of nine new proposals the Francis Howell Board of Education is considering, including measures on library materials, political campaigning and parent challenges to learning materials.
They have drawn criticism from some teachers, who say the measures would further complicate their instruction. The board will hold a first reading of each proposal at its Thursday meeting.
Under the gender discussions regulation, talk of gender identity or “adopting†a gender other other than what students were assigned at birth would be considered inappropriate. District employees would be barred from having such conversations with students without prior consultation with a parent or guardian.
People are also reading…
Becky Hormuth, an elementary school teacher in Francis Howell and mother of a student who is transgender, said the policy was “heartbreaking†and would politicize a sensitive topic for many parents and children. But all of the proposals on the agenda for Thursday are “very troubling,†she said.
The board will also consider allowing Francis Howell residents and parents to “challenge†learning resources. With the exception of primary textbooks — and instances when a school principal resolves a complaint “informally†— the superintendent would appoint a nine-member review committee to review challenges. The board would vote on whether to accept the committee’s recommendation.
Another proposal would bar employees from publicly displaying flags, buttons, posters and more, connected to any “partisan, political or social policy issue.†District administrators would decide what falls under the categories, Board President Adam Bertrand said.
“We provide these guidelines and they implement the policy,†Bertrand told the Post-Dispatch.
The board will also consider requiring that it approve all purchases of library materials. The same policy would also bar written materials that include “explicit descriptions of sexual conduct.â€
When asked if the policy could include books that have been banned in other districts, such as Toni Morrison’s “The Bluest Eye†and John Green’s “Looking for Alaska,†Bertrand said he didn’t write the policy and couldn’t say for certain.
The remaining five proposed policies touch on grading, board committees and appropriate work behavior, among other issues.
Debates over classroom materials and culture-war issues are not new in the Francis Howell School District.
In the past year, the board has considered requiring students to use bathrooms that match the gender on their birth certificates and edited Black studies courses to rid them of so-called social justice standards. Earlier this month, the board’s majority scrapped an educational video platform after a board member claimed it “pushed social agendas.â€
The board is now weighing several new changes at once.
“I do not intend for these policies to be inherently restrictive, but rather to document operational aspects of the district or put in place standardization for public clarification, in the hope of eliminating public concerns around these topics that arise from not knowing or understanding,†Bertrand wrote on Facebook last week.
Some teachers said they were particularly concerned with a proposed policy on electioneering. The policy would, in part, bar anyone from campaigning at school facilities used as polling places on any day other than election day.
In past elections, supporters of board candidates or bond issues have spoken to parents outside of school buildings or events.
Critics see the policy as a guised attempt to avoid a repeat of April’s election. In a stray from the board’s prior elections, two right-leaning candidates were defeated in favor of candidates who ran on platforms of neutrality. The board, however, still has a 5-2 conservative majority.
The board members know “they can no longer convince a majority of voters to accept their narrow ideology,†the St. Charles County Families for Public Schools PAC said in an online . “This language is a blatant attempt to prohibit citizens, whether school employees or not, from sharing their ideas and feelings about school issues.â€
St. Charles County Families supported Steven Blair and Carolie Owens in their successful board runs in April.
Francis Howell’s teacher’s union also supported Blair and Owens. The union’s political action director, Julie McDonald, questioned how many of the proposals under consideration would be enforced.
“What if I show up to school and I have a rainbow on my shirt?†McDonald said. “Who the heck is going to police that? Our schools are in chaos. We don’t have enough staff to do what we need to do to get through the day. Now we’re going to have people walking around making sure I don’t have a Pride flag on my wall?â€
All the proposals can be found on the school district’s , at: .