Concerned Parents Attend A Marietta City Schools Special Meeting

MARIETTA, OH — Yesterday’s special meeting called by Marietta City School District Superintendent Will Hampton and School Board President Russ Garrison was not without drama. However, considering this was a meeting called to discuss the handling of controversial topics like Critical Race Theory, The 1619 Project, and sex education, the drama wasn't too extreme.

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This meeting had been promised for months to address a number of parents and community members who are asking for complete transparency into Marietta City School curriculum. What the meeting delivered left many confused and unsure about what even was accomplished.

The meeting started a little after six o’clock in the evening, masks were mandatory, about half the crowd was pleased with this, the other half annoyed. Garrison and Hampton took complete control of the meeting from the start, they had a structured plan about how this meeting was going to go complete with PowerPoint slides and a list of guidelines.

There were roughly 30-40 adults who attended, they were grouped together in groups of 3-8, by table. Then they were encouraged to have various discussions concerning the handling of controversial topics. The groups were then invited to share their ideas with the rest of the attendees while Garrison scribbled down these ideas on large pieces of paper. It felt a lot like an exercise for actual students.

While folks were addressing the crowd it became clear that there was no dominant theme. Many felt that Critical Race Theory shouldn’t be taught in high school, then again, some were in favor of it being taught. Some people vocally backed those against Critical Race Theory, one table repeatedly chuckled condescendingly at anyone who proposed that this was even an issue. One woman brought literature against the 1619 Project while another woman at her table was very in favor of it being taught at school. The only thing everyone appeared to share was the desire to do right by the students in this school district. But there was clearly no consensus on what that would look like.

Steve Porter said he has a son who works as a teacher for the school district. “I’ve heard a lot of talk about being tolerant and respectful of other people. I think it doesn’t fall on the teachers to teach that, it falls on the parents. And to me, the teachers have an impossible task of teaching any of these controversial classes or subjects simply because of the bias, prejudice, and hatred that they hear from the parents.”

Hampton spoke about the current policy regarding the curriculum. He noted that the idea is to produce well-rounded people, with critical thinking skills, and the ability to decide these topics for themselves. He says because biases exist, they have to make sure there is a wealth of information afforded to them. “It is critically important that we understand both sides of the issue. We have to have the full body of information. It is the responsibility of the teacher to make sure such access to materials including various sides of an issue are available. We have to do that and give that information to them.” He noted that they take relative student age and maturity into account.

He said they have a framework in place for teaching controversial topics. “Students have the right to study any controversial issue that has political, economic, or social significance or concern. Have free access to all appropriate information. An atmosphere free from bias or prejudice.” He stressed the importance of this, so the students don’t know what the political leanings of their teacher are.

He said that their basic curriculum programs provide balanced, integrated, and sequentially articulated foundational understandings, attitudes, and knowledge needed for living in a Democracy needed for pursuing a career and life goals. He noted that their standards are established by state law.

Bruce Haas spoke at length about educational issues he feels are facing students on the national and local level. He said the main topics of concern are exposing students to Critical Race Theory, the 1619 Project, and Planned Parenthood Sex Education. The drama began when he broached the topic of 'exposing students to dangerous world views or leftist ideologies.' He took issue with a resolution passed by the Ohio Board of Education concerning the handling of racial material. One parent repeatedly spoke out and interrupted Haas while he was speaking. Eventually, this hit the nerves of some and an outraged Lynn Stoll flew off the handle.

“We’ve been sitting here and this is ridiculous. The meeting was not to be a socialist training group. This is to get you to turn more sheepish.”

She then took her bag and stormed off. It should be noted that this is not the first time Stoll has made a scene at a school board meeting before storming off.

The meeting took various unforeseen twists and turns. But, whenever someone started straying off, Hampton was there to guide them back to the subject at hand.

In the end, Hampton breathed a sigh of relief and stated he had a lot of anxiety going into this whole thing. He was very pleased with how things turned out. “If you look at other places, other communities, things have gone the wrong direction.”

It’s hard to say whether the special meeting was a success because it’s hard to identify what the end goal was exactly. A number of parents said this wasn’t what they were expecting, and appeared disappointed. There was a lot of community engagement, which seemed like a positive thing.

Garrison said that he would consolidate the notes and bring them to the next school board meeting. We will have to wait to see what, if anything, they will do with the public’s input gathered at the meeting.

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