Cincinnati-area school district paints over diversity mural, sparks controversy

In the stairwell of a suburban middle school just east of Cincinnati a newly painted blue wall has sparked controversy, the latest battleground for the culture wars happening within the school district.

The fresh coat of paint in the stairwell of Nagel Middle School in Anderson Township covered a mural that promoted diversity.

Within hours, social media was afire with photos of the mural before and after. It immediately became an issue in the school board race set for November.

"This mural represents the student voice in our district. It was created by students, for students, with a simple message – all students are welcome in our school. Our leaders have chosen to silence that voice, and in so doing, send the message that all are not welcome," board candidate Wendy Strickler Biederman said in a Facebook post.

Forest Hills School Board member Leslie Rasmussen confirmed to The Enquirer the mural was painted over by the school district on Thursday afternoon.

Board member: District is 'placating extremists'

The mural showed three hands of different colors as well as symbols of different religions, a variety of rainbow hearts to represent the LGBTQ community, a symbol for gender equality and a semicolon to represent suicide prevention awareness and those struggling with mental health issues.

For about three years, it occupied a wall in one of the stairwells at Nagel Middle School, one of nine schools in the district of about 7,100 students.

Then in August, during an open house, parents found the mural covered by a banner with the slogan "Connect," part of a rebranding effort by the school, Rasmussen said. Earlier in the week, someone had ripped the banner, exposing the mural again.

Then on Thursday afternoon, students found the wall painted a solid dark blue, she said. The mural was gone.

It wasn't clear why the mural was painted over. Superintendent Larry Hook didn't respond to messages Friday morning seeking comment. Messages to the principal of Nagel Middle School and to the president of the Forest Hill School Board were also not returned immediately on Friday.

Rasmussen said she called Hook on Thursday evening and asked him why it was painted over. She said Hook took responsibility for the decision but didn't provide the reason.

"This boils down to placating extremists," Rasmussen said. "He didn’t want to say that. That’s all I’m left to do is assume, because he could not provide a reason for having it painted over."

Forest Hills undergoing rebranding

While school district officials weren't immediately available for an interview, the school district sent The Enquirer an email that went out to parents Aug. 16. In it, Hook explained the decision to replace a student mural at Nagel with a rebranding effort.

The district has placed signs in high-traffic areas in all its schools, Hook wrote in the email addressed to parents and staff. The signs have inspirational words from the school district's "Cultural Blueprint," which Hooks described as "a document that outlines the values, behaviors and outcomes that define our school district."

"We hope this will connect our community, staff and students with the core values of the district and provide reminders of positive behaviors we want to promote," Hook wrote about the rebranding effort.

Mural represented 'as many people as they possibly could'

For many parents, rather than bringing the community together, the decision to paint over the mural has caused unnecessary division.

"Overall it feels like the decision has poured fuel on a fire that never needed to be lit in the first place," said Jill Burket Ragase, president of the Nagel Middle School Parent Teacher Organization and mother of an eighth grader at the school. "It was student-inspired, student-painted art."

Five students about three years ago received permission from the school to paint the mural, said Erika Nomeland, whose daughter, now a senior at Turpin High School, was one of the five mural artists.

"They worked together to come up with something that represented as many people as they possibly could to show support," Nomeland said. "And it was at a time when there was a lot of bullying, a lot of suicides in the district. So for them, it was something to show everybody they were included and welcomed."

Nomeland said she's disappointed by the school's decision. But there's a silver lining with the mural being shared across social media and stickers of the mural being made.

"Really the art has been seen by a lot more people than would have seen it previously," she said. "I think honestly it’s going get bigger and more visible."

'This mural helped me feel not alone'

A.J. Paszczykowski was an eighth grader at Nagel when the mural was painted. Now a senior at Turpin, Paszczykowski, 17, said the mural provided comfort to them as nonbinary and bisexual person. Paszczykowski uses they/them pronouns.

"Seeing the mural gave me a feeling of hope in the sense that my self-discovery, that journey started in middle school," they said. "This mural helped me feel not alone. I could go to others for help and questions."

Nagel's diversity mural had been the target of criticism from some members of the Forest Hills School Board, one of many controversies that have bedeviled the district. Shouting matches have erupted at school board meetings over the cancellation of Diversity Day, rumors that the district might consolidate high schools, the change of the school's mascot from Redskins to Raptors, a resolution banning critical race theory and discussion of gender-assigned bathrooms.

In June, the Forest Hills School Board approved a "culture of kindness" resolution that bans discussions of race, diversity and critical race theory.

Issue won't go away

The other members of the Forest Hills School District Board – President Linda Hausfield, Bob Bibb, Sara Jonas and Katie Stewart – did not return messages.

Board member Rasmussen predicted protests and student action similar to when Diversity Day was canceled.

"What I think likely will happen is the same thing that happened after Diversity Day, and it is absolutely infuriating because we have a wonderful district with wonderful people. But the people that sit at the table and get to make the decisions are making harmful choices and playing politics."

This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Ohio school district paints over a student mural promoting diversity