Penns Valley students call a diversity club ‘lifesaving.’ Why some parents want it to change
A diversity club at Penns Valley Area School District has existed for several years, but took the spotlight during Wednesday night’s school board meeting, with some parents asking for changes to how it operates.
In an interview with the Centre Daily Times, Maddie McCool, a recent Penns Valley graduate and former member of the diversity club, said the club that’s open to LGBTQ students and others is not only life-changing, but lifesaving.
“Most people think that it’s just a club ... but it’s not,” McCool said. “It’s a lifesaving community. There are so many kids who genuinely might not be here if it weren’t for diversity club, because it’s a club that teaches you how to accept yourself and how to accept others for who they are.”
But more than a dozen parents and community members spoke during public comment at Wednesday’s board meeting, with many asking that changes be made to when the club meets. Members meet during school hours, while extracurriculars defined as “non-curriculum related student groups” meet before and after school, high school principal Zac Wynkoop said.
Parents raised questions following a May “awareness activity” that was conducted during the school day, in which the diversity club handed out rainbow Skittles and information about the use of pronouns and the club, Wynkoop said. Following that, he received emails and questions from parents, who wanted to know more about the goals of the diversity club and when the meetings were held.
Extracurriculars are broken down into five categories: interscholastic athletics, clubs and activities with paid advisers (Future Farmers of America, for example), clubs and activities with unpaid advisers (French club, for example), athletic activities, and non-curriculum related student groups, which are groups conducted on the basis of religious, political and/or philosophical speech (fellowship of christian athletes, for example).
After a review of the board’s policy for extracurriculars and the administrative regulations, Wynkoop said based on the diversity club’s description, which references promoting social justice, he thinks the club would fall under the “non-curriculum related club” category.
The existence of the club is not in question, Wynkoop said, but rather when it should meet based on its goals. But plenty of people had thoughts on the club — both in support and against — and shared them during public comment. Enough people attended the meeting in person that two overflow rooms were filled, in addition to people viewing it remotely.
“I want the Rod and Gun Club to be able to pass out bullets in the cafeteria ... I want FCA to be able to pass out the New Testament in the cafeteria at lunchtime, if the diversity club is allowed to do that,” Spring Mills resident Tim Rogers said.
Sam Ewaskiewicz, of Millheim, is a junior at Penns Valley and a member of the diversity club.
“Diversity club has been one of the best experiences that I’ve been involved with in my entire school career. It has given me an opportunity to be at the head of a club that respects my decisions and really just exist in a school space for the first time in a while,” Ewaskiewicz said.
McCool, the recent graduate, said the club is a place where students can talk about their lives and how they are dealing with their sexuality, as well as general high school issues. She joined the club as a sophomore after coming out as bisexual and experiencing bullying.
“High school is always difficult for students in general, but especially as a queer student in such a small area, such a small town, like Penn Valley and the Penns Valley community. It’s really important to have communities like that because you have that sense of belonging, because there’s so many ... people that don’t support people of the LGBTQ community,” McCool said.
Molly Miller, of Spring Mills, homeschools her three children and said she was upset that she heard the school’s vice principal sat at the diversity club’s table and handed out Skittles.
“You guys are promoting sexualization, gender identities and sexual orientations to these children and it is being pushed in our school district. ... By promoting this agenda – propaganda – how is this beneficial to our education system? It’s not. It’s not beneficial to it at all. It has nothing to do with education,” she said.
The diversity club and its meeting schedule was not an agenda item for the school board Wednesday, and it’s unclear what changes, if any, will be enacted for the 2021-22 school year.
“It is a decision made at the building level, but the district will be reviewing our clubs and how they operate moving forward,” district communications director Nate Althouse said Thursday in an email.
The next Penns Valley school board meeting is set for 7 p.m. Wednesday, Aug. 18.
This story was originally published July 22, 2021 at 3:35 PM.
