Teachers, parents and students urge Kalispell School Board to restore daily middle‑school PE

Ben Young, a parent of four and a science teacher at Glacier High School, told the Kalispell School Board that daily physical activity improves concentration, behavior and academic performance and urged the district to "give them daily physical activity at school." The comment opened a lengthy public‑comment period focused on reductions to physical education and health instruction at Kalispell Middle School.

Noah Kauser, a physical‑education and health teacher at Kalispell Middle School, said the school went from about 150 days of physical education and 30 days of health education to roughly 90 days of PE with no extra health days, and that health units now are condensed into one or two days. "We came here tonight to shine light to this, to show some of the downstream effects of this monumental decision, and plead with the board ... to do whatever we possibly can to restore this important piece to Kalispell Middle School," Kauser said.

Gabriela Chavez, a health‑education teacher at the middle school, cited a Montana youth‑behavior survey and described how drug‑ and suicide‑prevention curricula have been compressed; she said the reduced time for both PE and health education will harm students who need those supports. "I'm scared for how this will impact the future of our children and our students," Chavez said.

Student speaker Axel Rauscher, a Glacier High sophomore and elected youth director, told trustees that daily PE shaped his own choices around screen time and wellness and asked the board to reconsider cuts that he said undermine long‑term student health and safety. Several teachers and a college‑faculty speaker, Conrad Rauscher, added that the district has "gutted" health curriculum for more than 1,000 middle‑school students and that the estimated savings from the PE reduction are "in the hundreds of thousands," which he contrasted with a district budget he described as exceeding $115,000,000.

Ross Dankers, an instructional leader in health enhancement at Glacier High School, said the district has built a culture of physical activity over decades and warned that reducing daily, structured movement risks making students "disconnected from movement" by high school. Multiple speakers urged transparency, stakeholder input and a plan that restores daily physical activity and adequate health instruction.

In response, the chair thanked commenters and said the board would "revisit this" and continue conversations with staff; no formal change was announced at the meeting. The board did not adopt a motion or directive on the issue during the session.

What happens next: The board said it will continue discussions with staff and review the matter; speakers asked for public, transparent consideration and for the district to explore schedule or budget adjustments to restore daily PE and health education.