Board backs administration’s decision to bar in-school staging of student play amid complaints about handling of chaperone inquiry

The Whitehall School District board reiterated that school officials have discretion over curricular decisions after an out-of-district student production raised concerns about content and supervision. District attorney Miss Cleve told trustees the decision not to stage the play at district schools followed consultations with the Department of Public Health and Human Services and Montana Thespian Project staff and cited Supreme Court precedents supporting district authority.

"It was appropriate for the drama students to go to Missoula to do the production," Miss Cleve said, adding that courts have long allowed school officials to make curricular determinations. She told the board the administration investigated reports of inadequate supervision during the Missoula trip and "determined that there were some situations where students were not supervised in the manner that they were supposed to be and that in at least 1 particular case, students were in situations that endangered the safety and welfare of that particular child." She said no one was fired and that "an employee chose to resign," explaining extracurricular contracts expire at the end of the season.

That account drew sustained public comment. Parents, students and local residents split between supporting the administration’s authority and criticizing how the district handled follow-up inquiries. "I feel like it is a good idea for there to be a place where people can come together as a community and have a discussion about [suicidal ideation]," student Katie Chadwick said, describing personal experience with suicidal thoughts and urging open community discussion.

Other speakers challenged the process and the content of a district letter about the incident. Mark Brown, a community member, said his concern was conduct during the trip and whether the situation had been "mishandled from the beginning." Dory Westhoven said parents had given permission for students' participation and urged the board not to vilify volunteers.

Activities director Jason Salvani, speaking in support of staff and students, said he was "proud of the way Mister Slater and Miss Neeskins handled that interview" and urged community members to attend the upcoming student performances. Former chaperone Tim Schober and other speakers said they were not interviewed during the administration’s review and questioned statements in a district letter about the matter.

The board did not take formal disciplinary action during the meeting. Trustees declined to change the curricular decision, and the district signaled it will rely on existing personnel and privacy protocols while noting it had spoken with parents about the incident. Several speakers asked the board to make investigative documents and clarifying records available; the board invited written submissions to the record and said privacy limits would constrain disclosure where student welfare and federal privacy rules apply.

Next steps were not set on the record beyond the district’s ongoing internal review and the board’s direction that public comment be noted. The board adjourned after approving routine business.