Podcast host urges audit after Munster student walkout, asks board for protest plan

Tracy Martin, a local podcast host, told the School Town of Munster board during the general public-comment period that administrators mishandled a February student walkout when officials moved students indoors under a "secure alert." She said students attempted to protest outdoors but were redirected inside; the resulting confusion, she said, led to hall swarming, fights and at least one reported restraint by police.

"I even hear rumors that Amazon was able to make deliveries, but yet we couldn't get our kids' excuse to go participate in the protest," Martin said, adding that about 50 students ultimately left campus and protested off-site under adult supervision. She asked the board to ‘‘come forth with a clear plan made in collaboration with parents, students, police, and a third party civic group’’ to guide future student protests and to conduct an audit of the administration's deliberations during the secure alert.

Martin said she wants assurances "that a secure alert will never again be issued if there was not an external threat to student safety," and said her follow-up emails had not been answered by the administration.

Board President Schwartz Wolf acknowledged the comment period but did not provide an immediate response on actions the board would take. The board heard Martin's request during the general public-comment section; no formal direction or motion to audit was made on the record at the meeting.

What happens next: Martin's request—that the district produce a protest plan and an audit of the secure alert decision—would require either a staff report, a board directive, or a follow-up agenda item to produce formal findings. The meeting record shows the comment was entered into the minutes; the board did not vote or issue a timetable for a response at the March 9 meeting.