Alliance accuses Waukesha Schools superintendent of discrimination against LGBTQ+ students and staff and seeks DOJ investigation

A group of parents, students, teachers and members of the public are calling for the Waukesha School District's superintendent to be investigated by the state Department of Justice, accusing him of repeated discriminatory behavior toward LGBTQ+ students and staff.

The Alliance for Education in Waukesha announced their position in a Facebook post on Monday. The group has about 125 core parents who engage consistently.

Last month, first-grade teacher Melissa Tempel took to Twitter to say her school's administration decided the song "Rainbowland" by Miley Cyrus and Dolly Parton was too controversial to be performed at a spring concert.

The tweet caught the attention of media outlets around the country.

Superintendent James Sebert said at the time that the decision to pull the song was based on "whether it was appropriate for the age and maturity level of the students" and because of "social or personal impacts" on them.

The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel requested an interview with Sebert last week; he declined the interview, and follow-up emails to him and a district spokesperson have gone unanswered.

Laura Pinsoneault, a member of the alliance and Waukesha parent, wants Sebert to resign "unless there are major changes to the way the district operates," she said.

Alliance believes this is a pattern of discriminatory behavior, points to other examples

Pinsoneault cited a number of examples of what the group considers discrimination, including the district's decision in 2021 to begin enforcing its Controversial Issues in the Classroom policy.

Sebert announced that decision to teachers in an August 2021 letter. Subsequently, posters expressing Black Lives Matter, Blue Lives Matter and Thin Blue Line signs were removed from schools. "Our advocacy for curricular resources and supports for student learning are never-ending, but our personal beliefs and convictions must stay out of the classroom," the letter said.

The district also chose to "pause our work" with the assigned staffer handling diversity and inclusion at the district, Sebert's letter stated. The district has not reinstated the District Equity Leadership Team.

An elementary kindergarten special education teacher was suspended in late 2021 for pinning up a Pride flag in her classroom and refusing to take it down.

Near the end of the 2021-22 school year, the American Civil Liberties Union of Wisconsin claimed the district's implementation and enforcement of its ban on controversial and political signs has not been applied consistently, resulting in increased bullying and could be violating anti-discrimination laws.

The district removed a statement addressing social justice and equity from its website, according to screenshots of older editions of the website.

The district has also removed books from libraries with LGBTQ+ themes, according to PEN America's index of school book bans in the U.S. PEN America is a nonprofit that “works to ensure that people everywhere have the freedom to create literature, to convey information and ideas, to express their views, and to access the views, ideas, and literatures of others,” according to its website. The list was compiled from July 1, 2021, to June 30, 2022.

Alliance provides an example of harassment of a LGBTQ+ student that went unreported

David Simmons, a member of the alliance and pastor at St. Matthias Episcopal Church, said in a blog post that his daughter was the subject of discrimination as an open member of the LGBTQ+ community in October 2021.

Simmons' said his daughter was targeted during Waukesha West's lunch hour by a student who presented her with a Pride flag with the words “Trump 2024” and “B — Blue, L — Lives, M — Matter" written on it.

He said he and his daughter met with the school's principal, where Simmons' daughter characterized the incident as a "hate crime." The district is required to report incidents of harassment and discrimination to the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction. The administration failed to report the incident to the DPI, according to records provided by DPI.

Simmons believes the district's policies have "created an environment hostile to LGBTQIA+ students at Waukesha West and encouraged those who might engage in bullying and intimidation."

Alliance says school board also at fault

Pinsoneault noted that the school board unanimously approved a parental rights resolution in 2023, a resolution that met with both support and opposition from parents at the meeting.

The resolution prohibits staff from referring to students by any name or pronoun other than the one consistent with the student's biological sex without written permission from their parents. A model policy shared by the DPI encourages staff to use names requested by students, regardless of parental permission, and to record those names in the school information system.

The board also instituted a dress code policy for staff, prohibiting clothing "that may be considered political, controversial, or divisive, or which is likely to distract from student learning, disrupt the school environment, or cause disharmony in the workplace." The district has directed staff members to remove rainbow-colored lanyards. In a recording of Sebert in a meeting with parents, he said, "a lot of it comes down to the rainbow-type stuff, making sure that isn’t in the classrooms.”

The alliance and others such as teachers union president Carrie Kummrow argue that the partisan nature of school board elections has led to anti-LGBTQ+ policies because board members are being directed and influenced by partisan national discussions on the treatment of LGBTQ+ people and youth.

The Waukesha County Republican Party has been particularly active in school board elections and in 2021, spun off the WisRed political action committee. The group has not donated to individual candidates but spent about $73,000 on media and consulting.

School board members say the alliance is pushing a popular narrative

Waukesha School Board President Kelly Piacsek said the alliance is pushing a narrative that the board is engaging in censorship, bans and malfeasance — a position she disagrees with. "Our Board and Administration have been fully committed to age-appropriateness, balance and transparency," Piacsek said.

The board and district's focus has been on ensuring positive student outcomes, college and career readiness, Piacsek said, adding that the current board was elected by a majority of constituents.

Piacsek also supported Sebert, saying he has been implementing policies and procedures that the board has requested with "professionalism and integrity."

School board member Anthony Zenobia said he would not accept a resignation from Sebert.

"Those calling for it use children and young adults for political gain and power," Zenobia said. "They have once again inserted LGBTQ students into the center of a manufactured controversy that had nothing to do with them. This is who the Alliance for Indoctrination is."

Former U.S. attorney says there is legal precedent and raises issues related to basic American freedoms

James Santelle was appointed United States attorney for the Eastern District of Wisconsin by President Barack Obama in November 2009. One of Santelle's most notable cases as lead prosecutor was the 2012 Sikh Temple shooting in Oak Creek. In 2015, Santelle resigned his post during a federal investigation into misuse of his government-issued credit card. Now, he is an adviser to the alliance.

Citing the Supreme Court case Tinker v. Des Moines as legal precedent, Santelle suggested the alliance could file a federal civil lawsuit against the school district's administration, saying district policies violate the First Amendment.

In the Tinker case, the court ruled in favor of five Iowa students who wore armbands to school to protest the war in Vietnam after the school board banned the armbands.

“It can hardly be argued that either students or teachers shed their constitutional rights to freedom of speech or expression at the schoolhouse gate," wrote Justice Abe Fortas in the court's majority opinion.

If the school district has instituted policies that are "systemic in nature of misconduct," the DOJ has an "obligation" to open an investigation, Santelle said.

The alliance is considering a federal lawsuit but hasn't made a decision; Pinsoneault said "all options are on the table." The group is asking that students and staff experiencing harassment and discrimination report it to via the DPI portal and DOJ portal.

The alliance has contacted the U.S. Department of Education Office of Civil Rights and is still deciding whether a formal complaint is the best route, Pinsoneault said.

Contact Drake Bentley at (414) 391-5647 or DBentley1@gannett.com. Follow him on Twitter at @DrakeBentleyMJS.

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This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Waukesha coalition calls on superintendent to be investigated