Life in a Northern Town.

The City of Rice Lake, Wisconsin works through their issues with transgender people on the backs of their schoolchildren.  Sad.  I wish more adults would step up, and these societal change issues would not be pushed down upon the kids.

Added:  this is the same county (Barron) where not too long ago a young man kidnapped a schoolchild he had seen getting off the schoolbus, and kept her hidden under his bed for months until she escaped and found help.  Just sad.  We need more sexually mature adults who are visible in communities like this, sadly.

There was time for just 11 of the 21 people who signed in to speak to the School Board during the 30-minute allotted time. The first three given the opportunity to speak had been cut off when time ran out at the Sept. 12 meeting. Laurie Broome, who wished to speak then, was not present. The other two were Kelly Sellers and Jake Lazar, both of Rice Lake.

Sellers, a male senior citizen, quipped that he identified as a 15-year-old female. Then becoming serious, he said, “I came out of the hopper a white male; I can’t change that.” He said if he had a student with issues of gender identity, he would want to know that. “For parents not to have a right, it’s totally wrong.”

Lazar is one of the pastors at World Harvest Church in downtown Rice Lake. He said no student should ever be bullied. He agreed that accommodations should be made for transgender students but not at the expense of other students. He was concerned about protecting all students in the locker rooms and ended saying each student is a masterpiece, not a mistake.

Carol Brunette of Rice Lake was concerned with the district keeping secrets from the parents. She said both her daughters were bullied in school, one for stuttering and no obvious reason for the other. “We need to focus on everyone’s needs and not give favor to one group over another. We need to teach all children they are loved, safe and valued.”

Nancy Keeler of Cumberland, who also spoke at the Sept. 12 meeting, said she wanted to set the record straight in that former Board Member Abbey Fischer was not verbally threatened nor bullied at the previous policy committee meetings. Keeler said she was there and held up detailed notes she had taken from those meetings. She said committee members had polite disagreement but no loud voices and no reason for her to feel unsafe. Keeler said she also called the Department of Public Instruction and asked what is required for transgender education. She was told there was no such requirement and that Wisconsin is generally a local control state, leaving the matter to local boards.

Bruce Willers of Rice Lake expressed concern about the locker room showers and said, “We need to get back to the basics of education.” He told the board members they were elected by the people of the district and they needed to listen to their constituents, even if they didn’t agree with them.

John Schleiss of Rice Lake expressed his displeasure on the topic of genders and pronouns, saying changing them at will would injure students both mentally and physically. He said Communism violates all of God’s moral commandments and is the opposite of Americanism. He said the national school system operates in violation of the U.S. Constitution at the behest of the Marxist-controlled National Education Association.

Gerry Miller of Rice Lake said parents should love their children no matter who they are, that confronting it is better than living a lie. He also said feeling safe goes both ways and said it is not fair for boys to compete with girls in sports.

Mary Hoeft of Rice Lake shared a story on how her grandson in first grade already understands and accepts a transgender classmate, and that while difficult the rest of us have to take the time to be understanding and accepting of others. She said the new policy language strips transgender students of the dignity they need, and she begged the board to table indefinitely a vote on the revised policy.

Ken Hood of Cameron told the board to focus on academics but let kids be free to express themselves in the classroom and to empower teachers to be safe adults that kids can confide in. His hope is for all races and genders to have a safe, welcoming, inclusive community.

Angela Televandos of Rice Lake said Policy 411, Rule 2 has taken on a life of its own when all it is about is parental consent. She said parental consent is needed for everything — a photo in the newspaper or yearbook, an Ibuprofen from the school nurse, a field trip, everything. “There’s nothing I can think of that a parent can’t consent to. I think it’s a really good policy.” She added, “Transparency is really good. It sets everyone up for success.”

Lauren Falkner of Rice Lake said she stood in solidarity with Abbey Fischer and although graduated said she fears for her younger siblings in the district. She said she came from a home where it was normal to be accepting of people different from us, but she knows that is not the case for all students.

Daniel Agne of Bear Lake Township was unable to attend, but emailed his remarks to the school board members and media. In part, he said, “I’d like you to imagine for a moment that you’re the teenage child of one of these parents and that you happen to be gay or transgender. Under the proposed new policy, you’re suddenly faced with an impossible choice — either out yourself to your parent with an opt-in form or allow yourself to be disrespected and deadnamed and walk around on egg shells all day at school. Either choice can have devastating mental health impacts. And the sad reality is that, in some families, choosing to come out is a real risk to one’s physical safety.”

Agne added, “Please take time to get input from the students who will make and live with this set of choices you’re setting up for them. And seek out LGBTQ+ perspectives from current and former students and from the broader community. Let’s reframe our goal here: Make Rice Lake Schools the most welcoming and supportive place for every, all and any kind of student you can possibly think of. Remember, kids will do better academically if they feel that school is a safe and comfortable place for them.”

In other business, the School Board: ...