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Parents and local racial-justice group press district to address racial and LGBTQ slurs; HIB review ongoing
Summary
During public comment Jan. 7, a parent and a local racial-justice organizer urged the Peninsula School District to address racial and LGBTQ slurs in district schools; district staff said a harassment, intimidation and bullying review with Puget Sound ESD is ongoing and will report to the board in February.
Speakers during the public-comment period urged the board Jan. 7 to respond to racial and LGBTQ slurs that community members say have occurred in district schools.
Chris Doherty, a parent of two students in the district, told the board that “xenophobia, bigotry, and racism are deeply ingrained in our Gig Harbor community” and urged the district to maintain inclusive instruction and a “zero tolerance policy for any racial or LGBTQ slurs within our schools.” Doherty said past comments at board meetings have sometimes masked harmful views as pleas to “protect the children,” and that marginalized community members continue to experience fatigue and frustration when raising concerns.
Peter Frazier, speaking for Gig Harbor For Racial Justice, invited the board and district leadership to the organization’s third annual Martin Luther King Jr. Day celebration on Jan. 19 and said the group had provided board members with event details by email and hard copy.
In the chiefs’ report, district staff updated the board on an ongoing HIB review conducted with Puget Sound Educational Service District (Puget Sound ESD). Staff said the review team was conducting additional interviews this month, would convene a second student symposium to review perceptions and survey data, and expected to produce a preliminary report soon. Staff described an innovative step: they plan to put anonymized student input and data into a custom AI chatbot the district will use to let students explore the findings and offer recommendations; staff said the full review team would present a detailed report to the board at the second meeting in February.
No formal action was taken as part of public comment. Board leadership reminded speakers of public-comment protocols and said the district would enforce its signup and time-limit rules moving forward.
