Pupils who ignore pledge reported

A new school policy to notify parents of their children's refusal to stand during the Pledge of Allegiance treads dangerous legal turf, warn some members of the Northborough-Southborough School Committee.

The committee ultimately left the policy decision up to Algonquin Regional High School principal Ned Gallagher, who initiated the policy.

A staff attorney for the American Civil Liberties Union of Massachusetts said Thursday that the policy is discriminatory and that the school is setting itself up for a lawsuit if it continues with the policy.

"They don't notify parents of students who do stand for the pledge," said Sarah Wunsch. "That's essentially a coercive action that interferes with their First Amendment rights."

School Committee member Anthony Poteete expressed the same concern at the board's meeting Wednesday night, saying the policy is "potentially legally fraught."

"It addresses a worthy area," he said. "Some kind of urging is good. The downside is that it could be viewed as intimidating someone who wants to exercise their right."

The policy also creates "an awkward position" for teachers, who have to report their students, said Poteete.

Gallagher defended the letters as a way to alert parents of their children's actions at school.

"It's something for the parent to talk about with their children," he said.

Gallagher said he has sent a total of six letters to parents so far. He has received little response, he said.

Although some School Committee members opposed the policy, they agreed not to override Gallagher's authority.

"We don't want to write how Ned deals with his students," said Beth Wittcoff, a committee member.

The Supreme Court has ruled that students cannot be forced to stand during the pledge. Courts have ruled that teachers can remove students only if they disrupt the ceremony, said Heidi Perlman, a spokewoman for the Department of Education.

In keeping with the spirit of the court rulings, School Committee member Desiree Aselbekian urged Gallagher to revise the policy.

"If [behavior] borders on disruptive, then absolutely send a letter home," she said. Otherwise, teachers should not be keeping tabs on students who are sitting silently, she said.

Committee vice chairman Kevin Merchant suggested that Gallagher send letters to all parents instead of targeting certain individuals.

An editorial in the student newspaper, The Algonquin Harbinger, criticized Gallagher's actions.

Some reaction was rooted in misunderstandings about the new policy, said Chris Brumby, an Algonquin senior. Some students believed Gallagher was intending to force students to stand during the pledge. Brumby said a small minority of the 20 to 30 students in his class would usually not stand for the pledge.