Westwood school board eases limits on classroom debate, restricts recordings of teachers

The new Westwood Regional School District board has reversed more of the policies adopted last year by "parental rights" advocates, with a vote to scrap rules that limited the opinions teachers could give on "controversial issues."

At a meeting last week, the board also approved a “right to privacy” policy that restricts the recording of teachers and school staff without their permission.

School trustees approved the changes in two 6-3 votes on Thursday night without discussion. Jay Garcia, Heather Perin, Loni Azzolina, Jorge Pertuz, Andrea Peck and Nicole Martin voted for the moves, and Kristen Pedersen, Laura Cooper and Doug Cusato opposed them.Since being seated in January, that six-member bloc has moved to undo changes instituted last year by a parental rights majority that held power. Last month, the board revoked a parental notification policy and reinstated a policy saying the district must accept the gender and pronoun choices of transgender students .

Limits on 'controversial' speech in class

Last year’s board included stricter language in its "controversial issues" policy about teachers expressing personal opinions as well as a requirement that parents be notified when such conversations arise. The policy adopted Thursday reverts district rules to their pre-2023 state.

Perin, a teacher by profession, has said at a past meeting that the stricter language would stifle the ability of educators to help students learn how to make and write good arguments. It limited what teachers could say in the classroom, she said.

Cooper, a holdover from last year's majority, countered at the time that she “never quite understood” why teachers need to give their opinions rather than “ensure balanced, objective feedback.”

A ban on unauthorized recordings

Superintendent Jill Mortimer said last month that the right to privacy policy got on Westwood's radar after education policy consultant Strauss Esmay Associates provided districts with a revised version last fall.

The policy prohibits "any audio or video recording" of a teacher, support staff member or student "while a teaching staff member is performing their board-assigned job responsibilities without the prior written approval of the teaching staff member’s principal or supervisor."

Cooper, who voted against the new privacy proposal, said at a meeting last month that it was a "poor situation" where a student needs to record a teacher. But with the proposed change to the “controversial issues” policy, she said, she was concerned that authority figures in the district would be able to “inject their point of view into a conversation.”

Although the incident hasn't been discussed by Mortimer or school board members who championed the new policy, conservative media figure James O'Keefe caused a stir at a board meeting last year when he threatened to distribute hidden cameras to students to fight what he called political indoctrination in the district.

Stephanie Noda is a local reporter for NorthJersey.com. For unlimited access to the most important news from your local community, please subscribe or activate your digital account today.

Email: noda@northjersey.com

Twitter: @snoda11

This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: Westwood school board eases limits on classroom debate, restricts recordings of teachers