School Board's Controversial Diversity Policy Passes: Daily Iowan Reader, Feb. 6

Iowa City School Board's controversial diversity policy passes after long discussion

After more than roughly two hours of community input and discussion on Tuesday, the vote was settled.

The Iowa City School District will see its proposed diversity policy in the near future following controversy and discussion.

“I don’t view this policy as the end of the conversation; I view this policy as a way to move forward,” board member Sally Hoelscher said.

The School Board passed the third reading of the controversial diversity policy on a 4-3 vote. The policy aims to equal socioeconomic levels throughout the district by distributing the percentage of students participating in the free- and reduced- lunch program across the district. Current levels differ as much as 65 percent between schools.

This policy defines minorities as “students who are receiving free or reduced-price lunches offered under the district’s nutrition plan.” Students not participating in this program are considered non-minorities.

Both School Board members and district parents expressed numerous issues with the proposed policy, including the language in the capacity clause.

While the board debated the specificity of the plan, some members, including Tuyet Durau and Jeff McGinness, didn’t deny the need for a plan — but they didn’t necessarily agree with the policy.

“Everybody I’ve talked to, everybody I’ve listened to believes we need a policy and a plan to balance current socioeconomic disparities we have in our schools,” McGuiness said. “The question becomes not whether we need a plan, but this plan.”

With clear divides among the board members, some suggested a delay in vote, sensing a prominent break in communication.

“It feels like the community has fractured,” board member Patti Fields said. “It feels like our board has fractured, and I don’t know how you fix something so broken.” 

Read more here.

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