Green Bay school board approves job-description changes after U.S. Education civil-rights letter; vote splits 4-3

The Green Bay Area Public School District Board of Education on Feb. 14, 2025, approved revisions to several staff job descriptions after a letter from the U.S. Department of Education Office for Civil Rights (OCR) prompted the district to remove or alter language that OCR said could run afoul of federal civil-rights law. The motion carried 4-3.

The move follows a statement read to the board by district staff member David Johns on behalf of Superintendent Vicki Beyer explaining the timeline. Johns said districts had 14 days to respond to the OCR notice and warned that failure to comply could put about $40,000,000 in federal funding at risk for programs including free and reduced-price meals and staff and resources for high-poverty schools. "From that time, districts had 14 days to comply, which is why the Board of Education is being asked to approve changes to several job descriptions," Johns…