Methuen committee hears public on challenged Alexie novel, opt-out process and bathroom access

METHUEN, Mass. — Public speakers and school committee members spent the Oct. 14 Methuen School Committee meeting debating the use of Sherman Alexie’s novel The Absolutely True Diary of a Part‑Time Indian in 10th‑grade classes and asking how the district handles parental opt‑outs and student access to single‑stall restrooms.

The discussion followed a parent complaint that a passage in the book had been read aloud in class and that families had not been offered an opt‑out or an alternative assignment in advance. Committee Member Kristin Maxwell asked the superintendent to place the topic on the agenda; the committee then discussed both the curriculum question and a separate parental concern that a male student had been observed in a girls’ restroom.

Why it matters: Speakers and members said the dispute touches on classroom oversight, parental notification practices and student privacy. Several speakers warned that even discussing removal could chill teachers and invite broader book challenges; others said families should be able to exempt children from material they find objectionable and to have workable alternatives.

Public comment: Dozens of residents addressed the committee. Heather Plunkett, identifying herself as a Methuen resident and the mother of a recent graduate and a current senior, said she read the book before the meeting and that a short excerpt posted online had been taken out of context. “It was just a silly offhand comment made by a teenage boy written as a thought in a diary,” she said, adding that families who object…