War in Ukraine comes up at Kutztown School Board meeting
It revolved around a parent concerned about students raising funds for Ukraine
Two Kutztown School Board members responded to a parent’s concerns regarding students raising funds involving support of Ukraine as it fights Russia.
One board member commended students for their compassion while another cautioned against the district in taking a stand in a conflict halfway around the world.
During new business by school board members at the March 21 meeting, Al Darion said he had an “overwhelming need to respond” to an email that Darion called appalling.
“The school board recently received an email from a parent that suggested that by putting up posters and collecting money in support of Ukraine, the school was improperly getting involved in politics,” explained Darion.
“The writer was either ignorant of or chose to ignore the fact that this is an effort initiated by students to help Ukrainian children who have been negatively impacted by the war, characterizing these efforts ‘as a new cause to get behind’ trivializes the real concern and compassion our kids are showing toward the children caught up in the horrors being inflicted on them,” responded Darion.
He said the writer continued with a reference to the Smith-Mundt Act and its revision in 2012, which, according to govinfo.gov “amended the United States Information and Educational Exchange Act of 1948 to authorize the domestic dissemination of information and material about the United States intended primarily for foreign audiences, and for other purposes.”
“The only interpretation I can make of this in the context of the email is that the writer believes that what it refers to as mainstream media is disseminating false propaganda from our government about events in Ukraine,” Darion said. “But somehow the pictures and stories we see in our newspapers, on a network television, are fabrications, currently free to believe Putin’s internet trolls rather than his own eyes.”
Darion wishes to personally commend the students who initiated the effort to help the Ukrainian children and all those who contribute to it.
“For their compassion and humanity and the impulse to do something good against the evil of this awful war,” Darion said.
Board member Jason B. Koch pointed out that Darion does not speak for the entire board.
“We, as a district, need to be cognizant of other folks, especially students with possibly Russian heritage,” Koch said.
However, he emphasized that he certainly is not taking a stand for the Russian side.
“I think that as we go about things in our district, we need to remember to take into account how signs may affect other folks,” Koch said. “Those signs may have been more effective and less controversial to anyone if they simply said help Ukrainian families and children.
“Help Ukraine, in some people’s eyes, is taking a stand in a conflict halfway around the world, that there may be differing opinions throughout the district.”
There were no public comments in response to that issue or at any time during the meeting.
The workshop school board meeting will be held at 7:30 p.m. on April 4 at the middle school and via Zoom. Policy and Curriculum meets at 6 p.m. and Facilities and Extra-Curricular meets at 7 p.m. on April 11.