Montgomery County’s school board is preparing to vote Tuesday on a new hate speech policy prompted by reports last year that racist language was common in the county’s schools.
The board also plans to discuss a proposal to hire four retired law enforcement officers to improve security at schools. The retirees would act as school resource officers at schools that do not have them. In the future, retired officers could be armed backup at schools that already have currently serving law enforcement officers assigned to them, the proposal says.
The school board meets at 7 p.m. in the County Government Center in Christiansburg.
The hate speech policy is scheduled for a vote, and comes with a school administration recommendation to approve it. School board members and residents have debated the policy since last summer, when Penny Franklin, the school board’s only Black member, highlighted student reports that a specific racial slur was used frequently in the county’s schools.
Proposed policy includes framework of education, warnings and mediation
Franklin also said last year that a hostile racial climate drove a Black teacher to resign last spring.
The new policy states a goal of fostering “an environment where everyone feels safe and included.” It defines hate speech as “any form of expression that threatens, abuses, bullies, disparages or intimidates individuals or groups based on ethnicity, nationality, religion, gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, disability, or any other characteristic protected by law.”
The policy bans hate speech on school grounds, during school-sponsored events, and “in any other place or context that substantially disrupts the school environment.”
The new policy does not mention the racial slur or any other specific terms, an omission that Franklin had criticized in an earlier version of the proposed policy.
The new policy outlines a framework for reporting and investigating instances of hate speech, and a penalty structure for students that includes written warnings and documentation, “restorative measures” like mediation to educate or change behavior, meetings with parents, and more.
Elementary school students could face up to three days of out-of-school suspension after a third offense, while detention or in-school suspension is a possibility for middle- and high-school students from the first offense on, with up to 10 days of out-of-school suspension becoming an option after a third offense.
Severe or repeated violations could bring longer suspension or expulsion, and referrals to law enforcement if the behavior seems criminal.
The policy includes little about hate speech by staff members, except to say that the human resources department will investigate claims.
The policy promises ongoing education for students, staff and parents about hate speech and its impacts, and about diversity, equity and inclusion.
Retired officers, guns, and body armor: $280K
The proposal on retired law enforcement officers would create a new staff category of retired school security officer. To be considered, the officers could be no more than 10 years past retirement, would have to have left their former law enforcement employment on good terms, and would have to meet various training requirements including training in threat assessment, responding to an active shooting situation, and emergency evacuation.
The proposal notes that most schools in Montgomery County presently have school resource officers who work for the sheriff’s office or a town police department. The only schools without officers are Harding Avenue, Gilbert Linkous, Margaret Beeks and Kipps elementary schools.
The proposal would hire four retired officers and add a $280,000 item to next year’s schools budget. This would include $200,000 for salaries, $68,000 for payroll taxes and health benefits, $6,000 for guns and body armor and $6,000 for training.
To read the board’s entire agenda and information packet, go to https://go.boarddocs.com/vsba/mcps/Board.nsf/Public.