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Winneconne board advances student name-change and pronoun policy amid parental concern
Summary
The Winneconne Community School District board approved a package of policy revisions that includes a new student name-change and pronoun-usage policy adapted from another district; parents at open forum urged clearer language to ensure parental involvement and clarity about when parents will be notified.
The Winneconne Community School District board on Dec. 2 approved a package of policy updates that includes a new student name-change and pronoun-usage policy adapted from another district and submitted to Neola for numbering if approved.
Parent Carrie Flagg, speaking during the public comment period, said she was confused by committee materials that described the item inconsistently and urged stronger parental-notification language. "If this is considered the same policy, there is a serious communication problem on what the policy is and what it's for," Flagg said, adding that language such as 'may' should be changed to 'shall' to ensure parental involvement.
Board policy committee members told the board the draft drew from Arrowhead School District language and had been reviewed by Neola. Committee chair Mr. Clindy said the draft was reviewed in committee and that the policy would be numbered by Neola if the board approved it. Committee members also referenced existing district policies (including mandatory-reporting policy 84.62) that would supersede the student-name policy in cases where notifying a parent could create risk to a child.
During deliberations, a committee member said the board had inserted language to require the district to "contact all parents or legal guardians who are known to the district" when modifying school records to reflect a legal name change, removing earlier phrasing that called for a "reasonable attempt" to contact parents.
The board approved the full policy package by roll call after the committee asked that the motion note specific changes to the social-media policy language and the student name-change policy. The motion included the academic-honesty, class-rank, graduation-requirements, search-and-seizure, procurement and property-inventory revisions as presented.
Next steps: the student name-change and pronoun policy will be sent back to Neola for numbering and implementation steps specified by the administration.
