Dear Parents,
As you probably have heard, many of the young people who attend Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, the site of the most recent school shooting, have sparked a national effort to have their voices heard. These students are calling on their peers in schools across the country to join in a 17-minute walkout of classrooms on Wednesday, March 14 at 10:00AM.
If you are a parent of a student at Bedford High School, you know that many high school students are planning on participating in this walkout event, and Principal Hagen has urged those students to develop a plan to safely participate without disrupting the educational process for students who do not wish to participate. The underlying principle here is based in constitutional law and Bedford’s own School Board Policy JI: Students Rights and Responsibilities, the pertinent parts of which read:
“Students shall have the right to peaceably and responsibly advocate change of any law, policy, or regulation. Students may exercise their right to freedom of expression through speech, assembly, petition, and other lawful means. The exercise of this right must not interfere with the rights of others. Freedom of expression may not be utilized to present material, which tends to be obscene or slanderous, or to defame character or to advocate violation of federal, state, and local laws, or school policies, rules, and regulations.”
Similarly, many of our Lurgio students have now approached me about developing their own plan for participation. In talking with these students, I have made clear to them the following points:
- Any student action must be student-led, and all participants must do so of their own choosing.
- The school administration, teachers, and staff will not sanction, organize, or otherwise sponsor a walkout event.
After the students reflected on our board policy and the guidelines I had laid out for them, they had many questions about what a safe and non-disruptive walkout would look like. Through this process, they developed their plan, which is to leave their classes at 10:00AM, and walk the halls of their pod areas in silence. Seventh graders who choose to participate will walk a hallway loop upstairs, and eighth graders who choose to participate will walk a hallway loop downstairs. Their plan is to continue these loops for seventeen minutes, remaining silent during the entire demonstration.
After reviewing this plan with the students, I determined that it meets the safety requirements of our policy as the students will be inside the building while they walk out of classrooms. Furthermore, from a disruption perspective, it does not disrupt the educational process of any student who does not wish to participate, as those students can remain in their classes, and instruction will continue. Because of these reasons, I have decided that any student wishing to participate in the 17-minute walkout may do so without consequence, provided they remain in compliance with guidelines presented and the school district policy. I have arranged for staff members who are not teaching classes at 10:00AM to be in the hallways to ensure that students are silent and do not disrupt classes. Students who do not wish to participate in the walkout may remain in class with their teachers.
Finally, if you do not want your student to participate in the 17-minute walkout, I urge you to have a discussion with them about it before Wednesday. If you would like to know whether your child participated in the walkout, please contact your child’s homeroom teacher. If you have any questions, please reach out to me at your convenience.
Sincerely,
Ed
