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Parents, activists demand investigation and policy changes after alleged racial incidents at district schools
Summary
Community members and the Merced Black Parallel School Board urged discipline reforms, a district outreach specialist, uniform 'hate speech' handbook language and an investigation and termination of a staff member; the district said it will study recommendations and incorporate some items into the LCAP process.
At the public‑comment portion of the Merced City School District board meeting, community leaders pressed trustees to investigate alleged racially offensive incidents in district classrooms and to adopt clearer, consistent policies to protect Black students.
Raquel Babs, introduced herself as an education activist representing five schools, described an incident in which a child’s Mother’s Day card included racial stereotypes and said a staff member—named in the comments—did not respond in a way that acknowledged the harm. Babs urged ‘‘immediate investigation and termination’’ of the staff member she identified, and cited board policy BP 5145.3, AR 5145.7 and Title IX as bases for district responsibility. She also asked that every Merced City School handbook include a plainly worded page defining ‘‘hate speech,’’ specifying consistent consequences and ensuring accessibility for families.
Members of the Merced Black Parallel School Board later used the district’s LCAP public hearing to press related recommendations, including hiring a dedicated outreach specialist for African‑American families, expanding restorative justice and ‘‘peace circles’’ districtwide, and creating a temporary HBCU recruiter position to increase diverse hiring. The Black Parallel speakers said they had submitted recommendations and expected the district to include or respond to them in the LCAP.
District staff acknowledged receiving multiple recommendations and said some contracts and positions are already in process; they also committed to supply clarifying LCAP materials and follow up with community groups. Trustees repeatedly asked staff to show where specific recommendations appear in draft LCAP pages and requested clearer change tracking in future drafts.
What remains unresolved: the community called for an immediate personnel investigation and specific discipline‑policy changes; trustees asked staff for documentation and data to evaluate those requests. No formal personnel action or disciplinary finding was announced at the June 10 meeting.
