Board of Education Meeting Recap: TOTS, Student Internet Safety Presentations

The Lowell Area Schools Board of Education held their regular meeting on Monday, October 10, at 7 pm in the Administration Building at 300 High St.

A fairly large crowd gathered in the small conference room to hear district updates from the board and from Superintendent Nate Fowler. The audience included parents as well as LAS staff members, including teachers, school principals, bus drivers and others. All board members were present with the exception of Tom Kaywood.

Report on Curiosity Corner and TOTS Programs

Program director Kathy Burch started out the evening with a presentation about Curiosity Corner Preschool and the TOTS program here in Lowell, complete with slides and photos of some of the community’s kids who have participated throughout the years.

The TOTS program – which stands for Toddlers On Track for School – offers low-cost (only $1 per child) twice-weekly playgroups for children ages birth to 5 years and their caregivers. The playgroups offer storytime, a snack, crafts and activities, toys, and songs, as well as give pre-school kids a chance to interact with other children.

The TOTS program is funded through Lowell Area Schools and the Lowell Area Community Fund. It takes part in many community events throughout the year, including story time on stage at the Riverwalk Festival, regular Family Nights, an “All About Kids” fall sale and a free photobooth and crafts at Rudolph’s Workshop in the Chamber of Commerce during the winter holiday season.

Curiosity Corner Preschool offers a variety of classes for children ages 2 ½ through 5 years old, including preschool classes for both 3 and 4-year-olds. There is also a “Little Explorers” class for younger children.

The preschool moved into a new building – the Yeiter Learning Center – and constructed a brand new playground in 2019. There are currently five teachers and five teacher’s aides leading classes at the school, and the enrollment has gone from 71 kids in 2016 to 183 kids today.

Internet Safety for Students and Library Materials

Next up on the agenda was a presentation by high school principal Stephen Gough and technology director Eric Stanek about internet safety for students and a review of students’ access to school library materials.

Gough explained that LAS students of all ages are protected by a federal law known as the Children’s Internet Protection Act (CIPA). It has certain requirements that schools must adhere to, including making sure children are protected from any obscene, harmful or pornographic content.

Next, Stanek explained that whenever students access a school computer, they are protected against any unwanted content by various filters and programs that LAS has in place. These work even if a student is accessing a school Chromebook or laptop at home, and they offer protection for web browsers, email, chat rooms and online ebooks.

Gough then reiterated information covered in a previous board meeting regarding concerns about students’ access to potentially obscene or pornographic reading materials through LAS libraries or online ebooks. He said that, according to the Supreme Court’s definition, nothing in LAS libraries would be considered obscene or pornographic in nature.

Christine Beachler, director of library media services, then stood to speak about the fact that parents always have oversight and approval of what their kids can access through LAS libraries. If they find a book in LAS libraries offensive or potentially harmful, there is an established process for reporting the book and having LAS media center staff review that title.

She said that no book had ever been formally challenged in all of her years of working for LAS, or even when her predecessor was here before her.

Millage Proposal

Fowler reminded community members present that the district’s Operating Millage Restoration Proposal would be on the November 8 ballot.

He said that the proposal is not a tax on primary residences and is a restoration and extension of a tax that had already been in place for a number of years. Fowler said that it was a requirement of the State of Michigan that the matter be put on the ballot, and if it were not to pass, it would leave a huge hole in the district’s budget.

Public Comments

Several community members stepped forward with concerns at the meeting, including two parents who had continued concerns that there were flaws in the book-reviewing process. One parent didn’t like that LAS staff and administrators denied any LAS books were obscene and called out Beachler by name, disputing her earlier comments.

Another community member stepped forward to say that he disagreed with the two previous speakers and thought that their comments were “…designed to stir the pot and to disparage LAS staff.”

One Board of Education candidate, Parker Liu, stepped forward to thank LAS staff and the board for their hard work over the last few “very challenging” years.

Fowler responded to the public comments by thanking them for their input and reiterating that LAS has a system of rating books that has been set by industry standards, but he encouraged parents with concerns to reach out.

Other Meeting Items

• LAS has applied for the 98c grant from the federal government which is giving out $52 million to Michigan schools to help with any learning loss as a result of the pandemic. The amount LAS will get is unknown, as it depends on how many other schools apply for the grant.
• The board accepted a $500 gift from Anne Marie Miller in appreciation of media center staff. The money will be used to buy new books.
• A reminder was made that this is the last regular Board of Education meeting before the November 8 election. Be sure to vote.

Board Communications

Laurie Kuna addressed the public comments made earlier in the evening by saying that it’s ok for parents to want to oversee and make decisions regarding what library materials their child has access to. However, “…it’s not your job as parents to look out for other parents or other people’s children…you can dictate what you’d like for your kids, but don’t tell me what I can do with my kids.”

Pat Nugent said that he liked to put the focus on the things he knew were happening in LAS that were positive and good, such as exciting reports of academic success, activities happening for spirit week/homecoming week, our preschool programs and the hundreds of students who opt for school of choice to come to our district. He said that “…the 1-2 negative comments and what merit they hold get all of the coverage…” but that the negative comments were not a true reflection of what was really happening at LAS.

Brian Krajewski wished the Board of Education candidates good luck in the upcoming election and said don’t forget to vote in November.

The meeting was adjourned shortly after 8 pm. The next LAS Board of Education regular meeting is scheduled for Monday, November 14 at 7 pm in the administration building. There is a BOE work session meeting that the public can also attend on Monday, October 24 at 6 pm in the administration building.