School Board candidates discuss state education bills at forum Wednesday
The relationship between local school districts and state control was one of the main topics of conversation at the latest Columbia School Board candidate forum Wednesday night hosted by Race Matters, Friends and CoMO for Progress.
Race Matters, Friends does equity work focusing on race, class, LGBTQ and disability issues, according to its website. CoMO for Progress advocates for progressive activism in Columbia.
This was the fourth forum the School Board candidates participated in this year and was moderated by Rebecca Shaw of CoMO for Progress and Peggy Placier of Race Matters, Friends. Approximately 27 people attended Wednesday's forum.
The candidates agreed on most topics discussed, which included two bills being discussed in the state legislature.
All candidates expressed opposition to HB 1565. The bill would allow parents to pull their children from any activity that includes material discussing sexual orientation or gender identity. The bill was proposed by Rep. Chuck Basye, R-Rocheport, in response to posters defining different sexual orientations and genders that were hung up at Gentry Middle School by the student Gay/Straight Alliance Club in 2018, according to previous Missourian reporting.
Jonathan Sessions, vice president of the board, expressed complete opposition to the bill, which he said was clearly an attack on members of the Columbia community.
New board candidate Chris Horn also opposed the bill and said it would only continue to oppress and marginalize people. He said that parents should be notified of the content of class discussions, but they shouldn't prevent those discussions from happening.
David Seamon, another new candidate, was visibly worked up and said he didn't have the words to describe how disappointed he is that Basye would propose the bill. He said it would create an atmosphere that would cause suicide rates among LGBTQ students to increase.
Helen Wade, president of the board, said the bill was ill-conceived, illogical and disrespectful. She said the state can tell the district what to teach but cannot govern extracurricular activities.
Also discussed was HB 1961. This bill would require an armed school protection officer to be placed in Missouri school districts' buildings or allow districts to employ trained volunteers who were former law enforcement officers or U.S. military. All candidates voiced opposition to the bill.
Sessions said he opposes the bill completely and that there are many issues with it, including fiscal issues. He said placing officers in every school would be expensive and the district is already underfunded in other areas.
Horn agreed with Sessions, adding that the district should be able to retain as much local control as possible. He said the issue of protecting students can be addressed locally without a state mandate.
Seamon expressed concern for the possibility of a tragic accident in school if there was an armed presence, especially if unpaid volunteers were allowed to be armed in schools.
"I don't care how much training you have, an accident is eventually going to take place," he said.
Wade said the bill has no value whatsoever and would prevent the policy flexibility that is needed in Columbia's growing community.
"This is a terrible, terrible idea," she said.
Candidates also echoed previous statements about seclusion and restraint policies practiced at the Center for Responsive Education, which is operated by Catapult Learning.
Wade and Sessions said communication needs to be improved between the district, families and Catapult Learning. They said the contract between the district and Catapult Learning needs to be clarified.
Seamon said the district has enough resources that it should be able to operate the special education facilities without needing a private contract. He added that the district should have strict oversight over education and complete control over any student discipline.
Also discussed was the presence of school resource officers in the district.
All candidates agreed that school resource officers have the opportunity to build relationships with students and change the dynamic between the community and the police force.
Wade said the officers should be more of a support system than a police presence in schools and there needs to be cooperation between the district and the officers to ensure they are on the same page.
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