The meeting will be held at Tecumseh High School’s Arrow Conference Room, with a budget hearing at 5:30 p.m., the 2025 organizational meeting at 5:45 p.m., immediately followed by the regular board meeting.
Arming staff
A discussion and vote on allowing armed staff was postponed at the November board meeting, in which a few people spoke about the issue, expressing both agreement and concerns. The resolution is now on tonight’s agenda.
The original resolution states the board believes that “the safety of their students and staff is paramount” and that “approved administrators, teachers, and school support staff with appropriate training are capable to defend and protect students and that such protection is essential in creating and preserving a proper learning environment.”
Other language in the resolution includes:
- Trained, armed staff would be allowed as long as Tecumseh’s school board notifies the public and pays all fees associated with the training and submits a list of authorized personnel to the Ohio School Safety Center.
- Approved personnel who meet the requirements of the law would convey or possess deadly weapons or dangerous ordnance into a school safety zone.
- The superintendent would create procedures for qualified people to be trained and approved by the Safety Committee, and would submit a list of authorized personnel to the Ohio School Safety and Crisis Center, “which shall not be disclosed and shall not be considered a public record.”
Religion — LifeWise
After a few months of back-and-forth discussion, the school board suspended a decision on the “released time for religious instruction” policy at the December meeting and are bringing it back this month for discussion.
A discussion during the September school board meeting included a request from LifeWise to offer their Christian religion program to students in the district. Tecumseh has had a policy that states the district “may” permit students to leave during the school day to receive religious instruction, under certain conditions.
That policy on released time for religious instruction had closely mirrored state law, but during the state legislature’s lame-duck session in December, lawmakers passed a bill requiring school districts to create a religious released time policy.
The U.S. Supreme Court has previously ruled that released time laws are constitutional, with some specifications.
At Tecumseh’s November school board meeting, at least 40 people with a mix of views spoke about their opinions on religious instruction in public schools and the LifeWise program in particular.
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