Powhatan School Board adopts policy changes following alleged racist incidents

POWHATAN COUNTY, Va. (WRIC) — The Powhatan County School Board is moving forward with policy changes after students and parents spoke out about alleged racist incidents in schools for months.

At a meeting on Tuesday, June 18, the school board approved policy changes within the Student Rights and Responsibilities document , addressing different levels of student discipline related to the use of hate speech and slurs.

These changes come after a photo of a student with a racial slur written on her arm circulated online in February. Since then, many Powhatan students have shared their own experiences of racial discrimination, prompting the district to propose policy changes.

“The school board must do better. We once again urge Powhatan County Public Schools to change course,” Gail Hairston, Powhatan NAACP President, said during the public comment period at Tuesday’s meeting.

One of the policy changes is regarding consequences for students who use hate speech or slurs, which now include reporting to a school resource officer and possible long-term suspension.

Despite the changes, many residents spoke out during the meeting and said these policy changes are still not enough to address the deep-rooted problem of alleged discrimination within the schools.

“We need to go back to the drawing board,” Hairston said.

Speakers also urged the board to include the word “equitable” in the document’s language, as well as adding a definition for “hate speech.”

“Having well-defined terms is critical, ensuring expectations are clear for all and ensuring consistency and enforcing set expectations,” said a speaker.

The board ultimately chose to not add the word equitable or define hate speech, but let the public know that hurtful words are not acceptable. Most board members stated they feel confident the changes will make a difference.

“I personally believe our Rights and Responsibilities [document] is solid, it just comes down to the enforcement side of that, and we’re not going to tolerate hurtful speech in in any way that’s going to hurt a student or an adult or anything like that,” Dr. James Taylor, Powhatan School Board Chair, said.

The full policy can be found here .

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