Date: Sun, 5 Feb 1995 17:11:59 -0500 (EST) From: David Casti Subject: ACTION ALERT: California School District Submitted by: Jessea Greenman (From publication called "CTA Action. Vol. 33, No. 5, Jan/Feb '95. CTA=California Teachers Association.) The cancellation of a workshop for teachers on the problems gay & lesbian students face at school has prompted 34 West Covina teachers to file a lawsuit against two school board members and the superintendent. The teachers are charging that the action violated their rights under the First and 14th Amendments to the Constitution and the Civil Rights Act. The cancellation came at the command of school board president Mike Spence and trustee Joe Mount. BOTH BOARD MEMBERS ADMITTED TO REPORTERS THAT, ALTHOUGH THEY HAD NOT READ THE MATERIAL SUBMITTED MONTHS AHEAD OF TIME AND HAD NOT HAD TIME TO DISCUSS THE MATTER WITH THE FULL BOARD, THEY "DIDN'T LIKE THE TITLE" AND FEARED THE WORKSHOP WOULD PROMOTE HOMOSEXUALITY. Guy De Rosa, president of El Monte Elementary Teachers Association, was distressed to think that the West Covina school board was accusing him of promoting homosexuality to 13- and 14-year-old students. "The fact is, my workshop was not directed at students, but rather at the teachers who would be able to help the students. I was scheduled to speak to educators. We are professionals and we need to be treated as such." He added "Gay and lesbian students are at the highest risk of suicide among all the at-risk students. Their needs must be addressed and I, for one, intend to see that their needs are met." The workshop, "Out of the Closet and into the Classroom," was one of 65 scheduled for the third annual Region Q Partnership Middle School Symposium. More than 500 teachers and principals were expected to participate. The Region Q Partnership Schools is a private, nonprofit organization in which participating principals and teachers from eastern San Bernadino County and parts of Los Angeles County hold discussions that help them deal with issues pertinent to middle school students. But, since a West Covina district school was the site of the conference, the steering committee of teachers and principals who had planned the symposium had no choice but to acquiesce to the demands of the West Covina trustees, even though the cancellation came just the Friday before the Monday event, leaving no chance to appeal the decision. In addition to claiming the action violated their constitutional and civil rights, the teachers are asking the court to rule that the cancellation violated the Civic Center Act, which stipulates that public school facilities are available for citizens and associations "to meet and discuss any subjects and questions that pertain to the educational interests of the citizens of the communities in which they reside." The decision was supported by West Covina schools superintendent John Costello. While the teachers and a few administrators were protesting outside the host school, Spence and Costello were reportedly watching and making note of West Covina employees who were taking part. Noted Kim Breen, president of the Teachers Association of West Covina, "Ours is one of the few districts in the state where the school board voted to cancel the state-mandated HIV/AIDS education program. These decisions are not made in the best interests of the students." Breen is a plaintiff in the suit. She added "The trouble is that these trustees do not want any reference to sexuality brought up in West Covina. It's a tragedy that we are prevented from providing [any kind of] sex education programs for our students because of the narrow, personal views of some school board members." School board president Spence was quoted in a newspaper as saying that "teachers are not paid to be counselors." "That's ludicrous," says De Rosa. "My school has not had a counselor in four years due to budget cuts in our district. Just who do they think is counseling the students anyway? When students have problems, they come to teachers for help." Please write to: School Board President Mike Spence West Covina School District Administrative Offices 1717 W. Merced Ave West Covina CA 91790. phone: 818-338-8411. Ask that your letters be cc'd to all other school board members and to the superintendent, John Costello. Letters of support may be sent to Guy De Rosa and Kim Breen at the same address. *+*+*+*+*+*+ Jessea Greenman Co-Chair, Project 21, GLAAD/SFBA 1360 Mission #200, San Francisco CA 94103 ph/fax @ home: 510-601-8883 "If love is the answer, could you please rephrase the question?" Lily Tomlin