Teacher role in Day of Silence questioned

The Juneau School Board did not take an official position on the Day of Silence at Tuesday's meeting, saying students are entitled to express themselves at school as long as that expression does not interfere with class.

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Board members did raise questions about whether it is appropriate for teachers to participate in the event during school hours, or give extra credit for students who are involved.

"I don't think teacher participation is appropriate, because it could be coercive," said member Chuck Cohen. "When public employees are working for public dollars, they are on our nickel and they are supposed to be remaining neutral."

The Day of Silence is a student-initiated, nationwide event sponsored by the New York-based Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network. Participants may chose to remain silent for a school day to demonstrate the silence gays and lesbians maintain to avoid discrimination. Last year more than 140 Juneau-Douglas students and some teachers participated in the event during school hours, either by remaining silent or by wearing ribbons of support.

After the event, Chapel by the Lake and Auke Bay Bible Church sent petitions and letters to school officials, asking the event be changed to a "Day of Respect" that did not focus on homosexuality, which church doctrine says is immoral. JDHS Principal Deb Morse asked the students organizing the event to take the issue to the School Board for guidance. Some other churches have supported the event.

At Tuesday's meeting, JDHS English teacher Casady Herding asked the board if it would take a position on the Day of Silence. Board President Mary Becker said she did not think the issue was something the board could address.

"I consider this a student-led activity, and our policies permit student-led activities," Becker said.

Sam and Lisa Guthrie, the parents of a high school student, read a letter in support of the Day of Respect and complained their child had been denied extra credit because she chose not to participate in last year's Day of Silence because she is Christian.

"The reason this affects us is because a teacher did ask her to get involved, and told her she would not get extra credit if she didn't participate," Lisa Guthrie told the board.

Cohen said school district policy does not permit teachers to participate in political activities on school grounds. Though teachers might not purposely influence students, they may inadvertently pressure them with participation such as ribbon wearing, he said.

"The Day of Silence is basically a political protest," Cohen said in an interview. "Imagine what would happen if there where a significant majority of students and teachers who believed and participated in a 'Day of Prayer.' ... I don't think it would be appropriate for a teacher to give extra credit for going to church on Sunday."

The board asked the Guthries to forward the name of the teacher to Superintendent Gary Bader. Cohen asked Herding to explain her involvement in the event. She said she had performed tasks the students could not do themselves, such as putting an announcement in the school bulletin and explaining the purpose of the event to other teachers.

Principal Morse said she was not aware of any specific instances where students were denied extra credit. Morse said some health teachers do offer extra credit for participation in a wide variety of civic activities.

One health teacher, Nancy Seamount, said she gives modest extra credit for health-related civic involvement. In the case of the Day of Silence, credit was offered because students were advocating for a group that suffers from mental health problems. Seamount said she would also offer credit to students who organized an activity that expressed an opposing viewpoint.

"Health is such a broad topic, it is very inclusive," Seamount said. "We give credit for bears, we give credit for bike safety, we give credit for breast cancer (awareness activities)."

Becker said if students were offered a variety of extra-credit activities, she was not opposed to it. She was not sure if school policy addresses the specific issue.

School policy also does not specifically address teacher participation in political protests. Instead, the policy on political activities states "district funds, resources and employee time may not be used to support or oppose the candidacy of any person seeking public office or to advocate a position on any ballot proposition or issue placed before the voters of a district."

Bader said he wasn't sure what the restrictions were on teacher participation in a student-initiated political events unrelated to an election, and would have to talk to district lawyers. Cohen suggested if the policy was ambiguous, it might need to be clarified with the input of the teachers' union.

Chadwick Bovee, national spokesman for Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network, said when the event took place last year in 2,000 schools, most teachers freely participated.

"I can show miles of videotape and hundreds of clippings that included faculty members, teachers, counselors and principals, that not only supported and endorsed the Day of Silence but participated in themselves," Bovee said.

Julia O'Malley can be reached at jomalley@juneauempire.com.