The Battle Ground Public Schools Board of Directors took the first steps to putting district policy in place addressing civil discourse and free expression among its staff.
During its July 24 meeting, the board voted 4-0 to approve the first readings of two policies addressing those two subjects. They will come back to the board for a second and final reading at a later board meeting.
The workplace civility policy comes following conflict among staff “strained by outside forces brought into the school environment in recent years,” according to information from BGPS.
“Over the last few years it’s become increasingly apparent that we need a policy to help guide some of the conversations and to help address tenuous and difficult situations that our staff are confronted in,” BGPS Executive Director of Human Resources Michelle Reinhardt said. “Essentially this is to help us maintain a respectful, safe environment for all staff, and ultimately it will help improve the environment for students.”
The policy defines uncivil conduct as “using vulgar, obscene or profane gestures or words,” taunting, using personal epithets or slurs and behaving in a way that puts another in fear of their personal safety, among others. The policy notes uncivil conduct doesn’t include expression of controversial or differing viewpoints that might offend others as long as the expressions are made in a respectful manner at an appropriate time and place and in a way that won’t disrupt the educational process.
Board member Ted Champine said the policy laid out its definition of uncivil conduct clearly.
“It doesn’t really allow much interpretation there,” Champine said.
BGPS Superintendent Denny Waters noted the policy wasn’t exclusive to staff.
“There’s a board of directors, employees, parents, volunteers, contractors, visitors. It’s all of us,” Waters said.
The superintendent said staff will be trained on the policy.
The proposed staff expression policy, like the civility policy, was recommended by legal counsel, BGPS Deputy Superintendent Shelly Whitten said. She said people have shown increasing interest in free expression in the last few years.
“I think the pandemic has brought out many of those questions,” Whitten said.
The policy clears up when it is appropriate for educators to exercise free speech within the confines of work.
The policy is shorter than the one for workplace civility. It states when district employees speak in an official capacity, “their expression represents the district and may be regulated.”
“The First Amendment protects a public employee’s speech when the employee is speaking as an individual citizen on a matter of public concern,” the policy reads. “Even so, employee expression that has an adverse impact on district operations and/or negatively impacts an employee’s ability to perform their job for the district may still result in disciplinary action up to and including termination.”
Apart from how educators express themselves in email, school buildings and to students, the policy also covers social media. Employees may be disciplined or terminated if the district deems their social media content interferes with its operations or functioning.
Whitten believed adoption of the policy would require some training, as well. She said the policy would help streamline how the district approaches issues of free expression and help differentiate between an employee acting as a private citizen or as a representative of the district.
“We get the questions, and then we have to make a phone call to the attorney in each individual situation,” Whitten said. “This will provide some guidance without making this a necessity.”
Board member Andrew Lawhon believed the policy set a good direction for those representing BGPS.
“I think that the procedure and the policy strike the right balance between protected First Amendment speech and being an ambassador for the district,” Lawhon said.
