The New York State School Boards Association sent out a warning to local boards across the state about the risks of letting students join protest actions in support of the gun control movement. It is ironic to see the sudden outbreak of pearl-clutching when charter advocates have repeatedly closed their schools and bused their students, parents, and staff to Albany to lobby for more money for their charter organizations, with nary a peep from the NYSSBA.

Incidentally, many colleges and universities have declared that they will ignore any sanctions imposed on students because of their participation in walkouts related to gun violence.

A school board member in New Paltz responded:

“In a recent Legal Alert email from the New York State School Boards Association (NYSSBA) to its members, advice was offered to school boards considering whether to support students participating in a planned national walkout in protest of gun violence in schools, or to exempt participating students from disciplinary action resulting from a violation of school policy. NYSSBA offered very cautious, sensible advice from a purely legal perspective. In short: policy should always be upheld in order to preserve order and prevent the danger of setting a precedent which might, in the future, be used by students to evade repercussions for other policy violations; and that school boards should not support such activities, because school districts have “no express authority to engage in political activities,” but rather should always assume a position of neutrality. In addressing the issue of students’ First Amendment rights, NYSSBA cited the U.S. Supreme Court case of Tinker v. Des Moines, which states that schools can curb students’ free speech rights when they cause a significant disruption to the learning environment.

“As a school board member, I could hardly disagree more with everything I read in this email. Public education has become a highly politicized environment. Governor Cuomo, the New York State Education Department, Commissioner Elia, the Board of Regents, corporate reformers and charter school advocates have turned our public education system into a political football that gets trotted out and kicked around the field during every election cycle. To say that school boards should remain neutral, even apolitical, is ridiculous. We are elected officials, and though our elections are nominally nonpartisan, we are individuals with viewpoints, we represent our voters’ viewpoints, and have obligations to them and to students. The very notion of free public education for all was once considered a radical idea, and still faces attack today from various opponents.

“As school officials, one of our first and most important duties is to ensure that our students, teachers, administrators and staff have a safe and welcoming place to learn, teach, and work, free from fear. We are facing an ongoing crisis in our schools, a repeating cycle of violence, followed by fear, then inaction, and finally complacency. Over the past 20 years, we have seen tragedy after tragedy unfold, from Columbine, to Newtown, and now to Parkland, each with its horrific, bloody, senseless deaths, each ultimately marked by the failure of leaders to take action. As the alleged adults in the federal government prepare to once again sadly shake their collective heads and tell us they wish there was something that could be done, young people across America are preparing to come together in solidarity with one another, and to demand that leaders take action to protect them.

“Our kids and our teachers are being shot down in the hallways and classrooms of the one place they should feel safe from harm. This is not a time for cautious sensibility on the part of school officials. It’s a time for outrage, a time for anger, a time for grief, and a time for change. It’s a time for school board members to stand up on behalf of our students and staff, not to hide behind the board table. Some of our students will choose to walk out and demand that change. Some will not. Either is a brave choice, and should be supported, not punished.

“Brian Cournoyer
“Member of the New Paltz Central School District Board of Education”