Lakeville school board to discuss removing 'inclusive poster series' that prompted lawsuit

Lakeville school district leaders are again debating a series of classroom posters — and the messages of diversity, equity and inclusion they convey — that mired the south metro district in a culture clash and legal controversy.

At its Tuesday meeting, the Lakeville school board is set to decide whether to remove a series of "inclusive" posters.

The meeting agenda provides no detail and only says "discussion and vote on the removal of Inclusive Poster Series" and includes an image of eight posters. It does not include any other background information or indicate who or what prompted the discussion.

School board members did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Four new school board members were sworn in earlier this month.

Grace Olson, the district's spokeswoman, said Lakeville Area Schools created the "district-branded inclusive poster series" in spring 2021.

"The posters were created with student feedback and the final designs and messages were supported by students, as well as staff and community advisory groups," Olson said in a statement Monday.

Most of the posters pictured in the agenda show groups of different students with messages about everyone being welcome. Two of the posters say "Black Lives Matter" and two feature the message "We Are Stronger Together." The school district's name and logo are featured at the bottom of each poster.

The scheduled vote comes amid a wave of federal efforts to end diversity, equity and inclusion, or DEI, programs. And it's not the first time school posters have stirred debate in Lakeville.

Legal fight over posters

In June, the Eighth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals reinstated a case alleging that Lakeville Area Schools discriminated against parents who were critical of district-sponsored Black Lives Matter posters. Parents had requested but couldn't get alternative Blue Lives Matter posters installed.

The litigation is ongoing, Olson said Monday.

The Lakeville poster dispute dates to 2020 when district leaders initially told teachers not to display Black Lives Matter signs because it violated the district's goal of maintaining political neutrality.

Months later, the district approved and paid for the printing of the eight inclusivity posters. The two that say "Black Lives Matter" also include a statement, in small print, that reads:

"At Lakeville Area Schools we believe Black Lives Matter and stand with the social justice movement this statement represents. The poster is aligned to School Board policy and an unwavering commitment to our Black students, staff and community members."

In a court filing in summer 2024, the district argued that school boards are "responsive to the electorate" and that taking a different stance on an issue at first "does not mean that it cannot later change its mind or adopt the speech itself."

The intent of the posters, Olson said in a statement to the Minnesota Star Tribune on Monday, was to "support creating school communities where students are respected, valued and welcome" — a mission the district remains committed to, she wrote.

Olson estimates that about 3,000 of the posters have been distributed across the district since 2021.

Carrie Popp, the president of the Lakeville teachers union, said she's heard from many teachers about how the posters fit into the mission of helping students feel welcome and represented at school.

After two turbulent years, including a $7 million budget cut, superintendent turnover, and a strike authorization vote, Popp said it's "disappointing" to see the new school board prioritize a debate about the posters.

"This should not have been their first initiative," Popp said. "It's the wrong message to send to the community."

DEI debates in other districts

Similar debates over school DEI initiatives have cropped up elsewhere in the state, too.

In July, the Anoka-Hennepin school board deadlocked during budget discussions, largely because of a partisan split over funding for diversity and inclusion programming.

School districts across Minnesota are also navigating ideological clashes over what books are appropriate for the school library shelf.

The Legislature recently passed a bill to prohibit libraries from banning, removing or restricting access to books based solely on the viewpoint or ideas in the book. But that bill explicitly states that it does not limit the rights of parents and guardians to decide which books and other materials their children may check out.

Some districts are seeing a rise in the number of book challenges they receive. At least one district — St. Francis — recently made the controversial decision to rely on a rating website run by volunteers to determine what books are inappropriate for the school.

Classroom decorations also came up in last year's legislative session. The 2024 session ended without a House vote on a bill that would have prohibited schools from banning rainbow flags.