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Hastings board adopts updated 6th-grade Northern Lights curriculum, backs levy resolution and approves gymnastics lease
Summary
At its July 15 meeting the Hastings Public Schools board unanimously adopted Chapters 1–15 of the updated Northern Lights 6th‑grade social studies curriculum after debate about language on collective action, approved a one‑year gymnastics lease and voted to authorize renewal of an operating levy; the board also accepted $33,700 in donations.
The Hastings Public Schools Board of Education on July 15 voted unanimously to adopt Chapters 1–15 of the updated Northern Lights 6th‑grade social studies curriculum for the 2026–27 school year, approved a one‑year gymnastics lease and passed a resolution authorizing renewal of the district’s expiring operating levy.
The curriculum vote followed a discussion about language in Unit 1 that one board member said could be interpreted as encouraging political activism. "Together, communities can use collective action to expose injustice, redistribute power, and fight for equality," the board member read aloud and said parents could legitimately find concerning if they expected purely descriptive history. Hodges, who answered board questions about the materials, said the text frames such examples as historical analysis and civic education rather than an instruction to mobilize: teachers use past examples to show how people exercised civic power, not to tell students what to advocate for. The board clarified that only Units 1–15 will be taught in sixth grade this year and approved that scope at the table.
Also on the agenda, the board approved a one‑year lease for the district’s gymnastics program to use an external facility. Board members said the lease is a temporary solution while district staff continue to seek a longer‑term arrangement; the termination clause remains constrained by the property owner’s position, and the district acknowledged it would be responsible for contract costs if it exited early.
The board then voted on a resolution authorizing renewal of an expiring operating levy. The board waived a full reading of the lengthy resolution and conducted a roll‑call vote; every director recorded an "Aye." The district announced plans to continue outreach and public information about school funding and referendum implications.
In other formal business the board accepted a donations‑acceptance resolution for roughly $33,700 in community contributions and appointed Director Biermeyer as the district representative to the relicensure committee. The consent agenda was approved earlier in the meeting without discussion.
The board’s actions were procedural and unanimous; no formal amendments were added to the curriculum approval or levy resolution at the meeting. Next steps noted by administration include communicating the levy/referral information to the public, scheduling follow‑up work sessions on survey question design, and continuing searches for a long‑term home for the gymnastics program.
