While school board directors are preparing to vote on next year’s budget, parents are still concerned that their rights are being ignored. The budget vote is scheduled for June 17, the June 10 work session began with several parents expressing their concern about a survey regarding sexuality given to ninth graders.

As previously reported, the survey in question was given to the students during a ninth-grade health class on safe dating. Some of the questions went to the students’ sexuality, but parents were not informed in advance about those questions, which goes against district policy.

Fabiana Dunn, of East Marlborough Township, said she’s concerned because “The survey was given without parental knowledge or consent.” Additionally, she said, “The school not only conducted the survey without permission, but they…made significant efforts to prevent parents from finding out the truth about the event, and even went so far as to conduct personal attacks on parents who had the temerity to inquire about the survey,” she said.

Dunn went on to say that the district said parents were spreading misinformation about the survey when “as it turned out, [School Superintendent] John Sanville and other school administrators were the ones spreading lies and misinformation…The survey asked the children about their sexual preferences, beliefs, and personal experiences.”

The survey was given by Deni Tobin, a self-described queer witch who, Dunn said, “would probably make parents uncomfortable, especially now after the school went to great lengths to hide her engagement.”

She referred to such surveys without parental consent as potentially harmful.

“Given this recent behavior, it concerns me that the school might be disregarding parental instructions while continuing to survey students without permission, especially on such topics as drugs, sex, and violence,” she said, adding that neither school board President Victoria Baretta nor Sanville has answered her questions or directly addressed her concerns.

Chad Williams of Birmingham Township is the parent who ferreted out the information about the surveys, and who claims the district violated the law and its own policy by not getting parental approval before the survey.

Williams said that there’s a “troubling pattern of misconduct in the school district that undermines the sanctity of parental rights…If a parent expresses concerns about the enforcement of a policy or about subject matter in the classroom, and especially if a parent claims the policies are harming children, or if the instructions conflict with deeply held family values, that parent is entitled to meet with school officials and get honest answers to questions.”

Williams then, as before, leveled an accusing finger at Sanville.

“The reason many of us are here tonight is that Superintendent John Sanville has demonstrated by his conduct that he does not respect the parents’ rights to express concerns, ask questions and get honest answers from school officials,” Williams said.

He said there have been numerous times when Sanville ignored parents who questioned the enforcement of certain actions during the COVID pandemic.

“He dismissed parents who told him that the enforcement of certain policies was harming their children. When parents objected to the enforcement of those policies based on the belief that the district lacked the legal authority, he lied and marginalized those who expressed concerns.”

Williams continued, saying that even after a court confirmed the district had no such authority, “[Sanville] concealed information from a state senator who asked questions on my behalf.”

He went on to say that, even after a transgender person walked into a Christian school in Tennessee and murdered six people, including three children, simply because they were Christian, Sanville dismissed parental concerns about a transgender person — that self-described queer witch — teaching about sexual topics was unfounded.

“He accused parents of spreading misinformation,” Williams said.

Other parents also spoke out.

Eric Dietrick, of East Marlborough Township, who described himself as a Christian, said he was also concerned about “that queer witch session.”

“I don’t understand why the coverup was needed. I don’t understand why I was repeatedly told by people such as Dr. Sanville, [School Director] Hellrung that I’m peddling fake news when I bring this up to you.”

Dietrick said he knows there are differences in political views, but that parents have the right to opt their kids out of a class where a queer witch is teaching about sexuality.

“I feel that we, conservative Christian parents deserve the right to opt our kids out of that and to know what’s going on,” he said. He added that he feels the board and district have disrespected him.

“What are we supposed to do? I don’t want my kid receiving Planned Parenthood information in the public school that I pay for. And for you to look at me and say ‘Oh, it’s fake news. You’re falling for fake news. You’re falling for misinformation, you’re peddling misinformation.’ It’s wrong to treat us this way…I feel disrespected by you.”

Megan Davis from Chadds Ford expressed similar sentiments as the others. She said she had four kids in the district but pulled three of them out “due to a lot of the reasons that Chad and Eric were talking about.”

Davis said her daughter was in the class where the survey was given. She had recordings of some of the things She was mortified. Some of the things were really sexually explicit. I was surprised. I was even more surprised that I wasn’t aware of it before she got the information as a minor. I was upset, and that was before I knew who was giving the information.”

She said the students in the health class had to tell the presenter about what they did and did not like sexually. “This is a big problem.”

Davis added that she has a copy of the survey so it’s not a matter of misinformation.

Other business

The vote on the Unionville-Chadds Ford School District budget is scheduled for next week and the board has decided on what figures they’ll be considering.

According to Finance Director Joe Deady, of the June 10 work session, the proposed final budget reflects $105.8 million in anticipated revenue and expenditures, with millage rates of 32.61mils for Chester County property owners and 18.57 mills for property owners in Chadds Ford Township, the only Delaware County municipality in the U-CF District. Those rates reflect a 2.07 percent tax increase in Chester County and an 11.06 percent increase in Chadds Ford. Combined, those increases are a weighted increase of 3.99 percent.

“This is the same budget we discussed in May, he said.