Oxford School Board Unanimously Approves Winter Institute Agreement Despite Backlash

Earlier tonight, the Oxford School Board voted in favor of expanding their involvement with the William Winter Institute, an organization dedicated to teaching racial reconciliation. The Institute has been involved in the district over the course of this school year in the form of four training sessions for the district teachers and administrators. 
The vote passed unanimously after an hour of a public participation discussion. The first to speak during the discussion was radio personality Lee Habeeb, who has been outspoken against the Winter Institute throughout this process. Habeeb referenced posts from Jennifer Stollman’s Facebook page using unfavorable language to describe certain groups of people. Stollman is the academic director of the Winter Institute, and Habeeb sees her posts as the opposite of what her organization stands for. 
“When our children discover that the folks that are teaching them tolerance and inclusivity in our schools routinely use hateful language on Facebook and Twitter to describe those who disagree with them, what will the Oxford School District tell those children?” Habeeb said. 
The expansion of the program will now include further training and the development of the “Welcome Table” program. The program is designed to bring diverse groups of people together to discuss issues of race and issues in society. All in all 14 individuals spoke at the board meeting, both for and against the agreement with the Winter Institute. Fred Lorenzo, a local man, has been a part of a Welcome Table for several meetings and spoke about their benefits. 
“They create a situation and atmosphere where people can talk to each other open and honestly. The result is people discover their own biases and prejudices. They do not impose any point of view on the group,” Lorenzo said. “What will result is a bonding experience among the faculty and better morale in the school district. We can all agree there are biases on both sides of any divide we can think of. The Winter Institute provides a way to bridge that divide.”

While Stollman wasn’t at the meeting, a representative from the Winter Institute was in attendance. April Grayson, a member of the community building team for the Institute, spoke about the organization’s goal to allow those in the group to do the talking, not the leaders of the Institute. 
“Our job is to establish a productive space open to all voices, and to take our own prospectives out of the way as those gathered are able to speak their truths asks questions and seek greater understanding,” Grayson said. “Welcome others and presume you are welcome, I welcome everyone, even our greatest skeptics into this conversation and I look forward to getting to know you better.”
After the meeting, Habeeb said that the lack of a true public forum ensured that he would continue to push the school board for answers. Habeeb is ready to buy out full page ads across town to educate Oxonians on his issues with the Winter Institue. 
“All we asked for was an hour, a real public forum. Transparency and democracy are always what’s best, along with time and discussion especially with an issue like race,” Habeeb said. “By the time of the next board meeting, you’ll see a lot of well informed and concerned parents wondering why outright bigotry is countenanced by the Winter Institute.”
School Board President Marian Barksdale hopes that while there were differing opinions at the meeting, common ground can be found. 
“They’ll start implementing professional development and the Welcome Tables, but the discussion never ends. We always are happy to have public participation at our meeting for parents and citizens to tell us what there thinking,” Barksdale said. I hope that everybody who spoke will join a Welcome Table and be part of the program.”
The original Memorandum of Agreement (seen here) was reached back in November, and certain changes were made before the vote took place. Participation for teachers will be left up to the principal’s discretion rather than being mandatory as it originally was. Language in the MOA was also changed to “invite” participants rather than encourage them. 
For HottyToddy.com’s previous coverage of this issue, including quotes from Superintendent Brian Harvey, click here. 

Steven Gagliano is a writer for HottyToddy.com. He can be reached at steven.gagliano@hottytoddy.com. He can be reached at steven.gagliano@hottytoddy.com. 
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