School Board faces rising COVID cases, Confederate flag waver, as member declines to sign conduct code

The Warren County School Board during its regular meeting on Wednesday, September 1, learned that there are rising numbers of COVID-19 cases across the school division, addressed a recent Confederate flag-waving incident in one of the schools, and had a recently appointed board member opt not to sign a State School Board Association Code of Conduct.

The numbers of students and staff with COVID-19 are rising in Warren County Public Schools (WCPS), Superintendent Christopher Ballenger reported to the School Board on Wednesday.

According to the WCPS COVID-19 Dashboard Data reported online, as of September 1, 2021, there are 102 positive student COVID cases and 14 positive staff COVID cases. The data also shows that as of September 1, there are 316 students and two WCPS staff who are quarantined due to direct contact cases.

In comparison, dashboard data as of September 8, 2020, showed 151 positive student COVID cases and 69 positive staff cases, with 831 students and 151 staff quarantined due to direct contact cases.

“So, we’re seeing a little more positive cases within the schools at this point in time,” Ballenger told School Board members, noting that it’s slightly more difficult this school year to maintain the six feet of social distancing since everyone is back in their regular schools. During the school year 2020-2021, for instance, fifth-graders were moved to middle schools to spread out classes and create more space between students in elementary schools. That’s not being done during the current school year, he said.

What is being done, however, is that WCPS is following state mask policies issued by Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam and federal quarantine guidelines issued by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Ballenger said, “which is helping us protect instruction for each individual student in the classroom and within our buildings.”

With the COVID-19 trend line inching upward for confirmed cases division-wide, Ballenger outlined several other increased mitigation strategies that are also underway for WCPS, including modified schedules, increased social distancing as much as possible, enhanced cleaning, and constant communication with the Lord Fairfax Health Department.

WCPS is not on the Health Department’s most recent list of outbreaks and there is no clear knowledge of any outbreaks within WCPS, Ballenger said, adding that cases in the schools that are reported on the dashboard are identified from the community.

“We are going to continue to be vigilant, and we are asking our community to help support us as we try to provide instruction for every single student,” said Ballenger. “We understand that students being in the classroom is most beneficial for them, but we need our community to support us and help us make that happen for all of our students.”

Flag incidents addressed

Prior to the superintendent’s report, School Board Vice-Chair Catherine Bower read what she called a Public Service Announcement (PSA) that addressed two incidents during the first week of school when a male student carried and waved a Confederate flag in a crowded hallway the day after displaying a pro-Trump flag. The events “caused a disruption in our schools and community,” Bower read from the PSA.

“The School Board ensures a safe learning environment for all students, staff, and community members,” she read. “We ensure an inclusive environment where we value each individual. Warren County Public Schools does not discriminate and has no tolerance for discrimination based on sex, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, race, color, national origin, disability, religion, ancestry, age, marital status, pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions, military status, genetic information, or any other characteristic protected by law.”

Photos of the two incidents were forwarded to the Royal Examiner from social media posts. Above, the Confederate flag incident on the second day; below, the first flag brought to school the previous day. Social Media Courtesy Photos

Bower said the board’s commitment is present in all its policies and practices concerning staff, students, educational programs and services, and individual entities with which the board does business.

“We are here to ensure that students can learn in an environment that is orderly, supportive, and respectful. When that orderly environment is disrupted, the school administration will address all situations promptly,” read Bower.

And while the School Board understands that students do possess a certain level of free expression rights under the First Amendment, such rights “must not interfere with the educational environment,” according to the board’s statement.

“We value individuality and respect self-expression; however, we will not allow this to interfere with the school environment and/or the rights of our students,” said Bower.
Questioned about details and possible consequences of the flag incidents, WCPS Director of Communication Shane Goodwin reiterated the content of Bower’s Public Service Announcement in an email response to Royal Examiner.

Code of Conduct

During its last agenda item, the School Board discussed the Virginia School Boards Association (VSBA) Code of Conduct for school board members. It has been the practice of the Warren County School Board to annually adopt the Code of Conduct, and every member, except one, agreed last night to sign the document.

Melanie Salins — the board’s only appointed member — declined to sign it, saying she was not comfortable with the verbiage used in several sections of the document. For instance, Salins asked to have the word “constitution” included in code item No. 8, which states: “I will bring about desired changes through legal and ethical procedures, upholding and enforcing all laws, state regulations, and court orders pertaining to schools.”

In response to a request for clarification, Salins told the Royal Examiner in an email today: “I would like to see the federal and state constitution added” to that item in the Code of Conduct. “I found it a glaring oversight to leave out such an important word,” she wrote, noting that board members take an oath when they’re sworn into their positions to uphold the constitution.

During the meeting, Board Vice-Chair Bower told Salins that the code is a state-specific document issued by the VSBA and the Warren County School Board cannot change it. But Bower suggested that Salins could contact VSBA to “see if that’s something they might want to consider.” Bower also said it was fine if Salins or any other board member did not want to sign the code of conduct, as it’s an optional choice.

“The VSBA Code of Conduct is a non-binding guide for certain behaviors expected of board members,” Bower wrote in an email sent to the Royal Examiner today. “Individual board members can elect to follow or not follow the Code of Conduct.”

Bower wrote that she signed the document “because I consider the Code of Conduct as a blueprint for the governance of our school system. As a board member, I am choosing to conduct myself in a manner that is in accordance with the VSBA Code of Conduct so that individuals will know that I will do my best to serve our students, staff, and community.”

Some other provisions included in the VSBA Code of Conduct calls for school board members to “refrain from using the board position for personal or partisan gain and avoid any conflict of interest or the appearance of impropriety;” to “respect the confidentiality of privileged information and make no individual decisions or commitments that might compromise the board or administration”; and to “delegate authority for the administration of the schools to the superintendent and establish a process for accountability of administrators.”

Salins also told the Royal Examiner that she took issue with code item No. 7, which states: “I will communicate, in accordance with board policies, public reaction, and opinion regarding board policies and school programs to the full board and superintendent.”

“I requested a reference to what specific policy this was asking me to promise to follow,” Salins wrote in her email. “I cannot promise to follow a policy that is not stated in the document or listed by reference on the document.”

The VSBA Code of Conduct may be viewed online here.

Action items

Among several items unanimously approved on Wednesday night by the School Board — with all members present, including Bower and Kristen Pence, James Wells, Ralph Rinaldi, and Salins — was the appointment of a new Deputy Clerk of the Board and the approval of an increased financial supplement for that position; a new kindergarten instructional assistant for A. S. Rhodes Elementary School; an expenditure over $15,000 to purchase a point-of-sale software and hardware support package for WCPS Food and Nutrition Services; and a contract for architectural and engineering services for the HVAC replacements at both the Blue Ridge Technical Center and Leslie Fox Keyser Elementary School.

Watch the School Board’s September 1 regular meeting video in its entirety here. The board’s next meeting will be held on Wednesday, September 15.