Concord considers joining social media lawsuit

Jul. 18—DUNLAP — Concord Community Schools is considering joining together with a group of districts across the state of Indiana to pursue litigation against social media companies.

Concord Community Schools Superintendent Dan Funston explained that the strain on school districts caused by social media and its effects on students is the catalyst for the potentially nationwide litigation.

"I think you probably would have to have been living under a rock lately to not know that things have come out in recent past about how social media companies drive traffic to our kids," Funston said. "Facebook, TikTok, Snapchat and Google have been presented with the evidence that some things that are presented to students have detrimental effects."

Funston went on to explain that Indiana is 49th in the state in mental health support to students and claims that social media causes a strain on mental health counselors within the district caused by things happening on social media and interactions with each other on social media.

Funston said he was approached by the law firm Wagstaff & Cartmell to join a webinar further explaining the position

The law firm also represented school districts in a vaping lawsuit alleging companies were targeting youth, a lawsuit which included Concord.

"There's a lot of things that come with that when they're targeting students," Funston said. "A lot of supports that have to be placed in school, a lot of police support takes place that involves that."

Districts already involved in Indiana include Indianapolis Public Schools, Fort Wayne Community Schools, Elkhart Community Schools, Greater Clark County Schools, and Lawrenceburg Community Schools, among others.

"You've heard me rant and rave about the impact of social media on our students and hope this is something that we can support and show our support by our participation in this," Funston said.

The lawsuit alleges that social media has placed an unnecessary burden on school administrators by creating a disruptive school environment, as well as social media addiction and subsequent mental health crises, causing schools to hire additional mental health professionals, develop lesson plans on social media harms, provide training to educators, staff and community; address property damage caused by mentally anguished students, increase disciplinary measures; address bullying, harassment, and threats; confiscate electronic devices, notify parents and guardians of behavioral and attendance issues, investigate and respond to threats made over social media, and update handbooks and school policies.

Among students, the lawsuit claims that social media is responsible for an increase in anxiety, depression, eating disorders, body dysmorphia, Attention-Deficit Disorder and Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder, local of focus and inability to concentrate, self-harm, and suicidal ideation, and that the law affords districts the opportunity to hold social media companies responsible for damage caused to children.

"I think there's no question on malfeasance here, but for me, I'd really like to hear what parents have to say about all this," board member Mike Malooley said.

Community members are welcome and encouraged to reach out to Funston or members of the board to express their thoughts on the district joining in the lawsuit.

ILEARN RESULTS

Concord Community Schools Assistant Superintendent of Curriculum and Instruction Kent Myers shared ILEARN scores with the board and those in attendance at the meeting. Statewide, the scores were released last Wednesday. Myers explained that compared to the state average, Concord resides below average, but better than in previous years with continued improvement.

Myers commented that one of the groups that has shown difficulty in improvement is the district's English Learner (EL) students. He explained that the district has averaged 100 additional EL students per year, but in the 2022/2023 school year, there was a 200 student increase. It's about 30% of the district's student population.

"That's not an excuse," he said. "It's a reality that we need to provide better supports for our students that need them, but that is a strong percentage of our student body."

He also noted that East Side was above the state average in reading in third grade and math in fourth grade, and West Side Elementary School showed significant growth in both fields in fourth and fifth grades.

Myers presented the information, comparative to previous years and the state information for that year, using cohorts now in third through eighth grade.

Statewide in language arts, the cohorts averaged between 40 to 44%, but at Concord, the passing rates range from 26% per class to 40% depending on the grade, with more students on average passing the standardized testing in later years. According to the numbers, students at Concord now in eighth grade are passing at state average rates, about 44%, but younger grades aren't yet meeting the 40% mark.

"Given time, that is showing we are supporting our kids, but again, I always say, 'We want to do more. We want to help more.'"

In math, the trend continues, with Concord falling below the state average, but the state average declines each year through eighth grade with this year's Hoosier third-graders averaging 53% passing while eighth-graders only passed on average 32%. At Concord third grade passing was closer to 42%, while eighth grade was 24%.

"There's a lot of work in terms of math instruction that needs to occur in all schools in the state of Indiana," Myerd said.

Myers said he hopes the adoption of the new textbooks adopted for the 2023-2024 school year will better support sixth through eighth grades, and he has plans for the adoption of the same curriculum for kindergarten through fifth grade this year, to be implemented in the 2024-2025 school year.

"I will say, our teachers have done a fantastic job this summer," he added. "There were lots of teachers in here this summer working on curriculum and redefining, with this data in mind, 'What do we need to do differently for our kids?'"

BOND HEARING

Concord Community Schools Board of Trustees approved a $3.5 million general obligation bond, which will give two schools parking lot upgrades, and improve the high school softball fields.

Funston explained the traffic concerns at both Ox Bow and East Side elementary schools and added that one goal of the bonds is to get traffic off main roads at the two schools. They also want to improve drainage and lighting needs, and meet ADA needs. At the high school, the hope is to address drainage concerns at the softball fields, replace fencing and scoreboards, and improve walking spaces.

General obligation bonds have become commonplace since circuit break laws went into effect for districts that tended to receive additional funds for capital projects. Districts not impacted by circuit breaker laws generally don't need general obligation bonds, but Concord isn't one of them.

"The district has lowered our debt-service rate pretty considerably," Funston said. "It actually came up as a concern in the community building survey that people were concerned that we're not going to be able to provide for kids by doing that."

The district has lowered its debt-service rate by 78.5 cents and the overall tax rate is the lowest it's been in several years, despite that, Funston said the projects are designed to keep the tax rate the same.

If bids come in lower than expected, the bond may also support paving at Ox Bow Elementary School's playground, a new boiler for the school, and school bus replacement.

ADVANCEMENT PLACEMENT UPDATE

Concord High School Principal Seth Molnar presented results from this year's AP exams. The district has 13 different AP opportunities and 153 students took the exams in a slew of subjects. Not all students passed every subject, but Molnar was excited to express the high levels of passing in many of the subjects.

In AP Art, 2D Art has an 89% passing rate, while AP Drawing had a 100%, as compared to the global averages of 84% and 85%.

Science classes also fared well. In AP Chemistry, students met the global average with a 75% passing rate, and in AP Physics they nearly hit the global average of 45% with 43%.

AP English Literature and Composition had its highest scores ever, averaging 88 passing rate compared to the global average of 77%, while AP U.S. Government had a passing rate of 71% compared to the global average of 49%, and U.S. History saw its highest mean school since before the pandemic.

The newest AP class to offer testing, Computer Science, which nine students sat for, had two students pass.

Among all tests, the average passing rate increased by about 3%.

Other items to come before the board include:

—Assistant Superintendent for Educational Programming Lisa Kendall introduced to board members a new grant awarded by the Indiana Department of Education. The Computer Science Catalyst Grant is designed to help prepare the scope of the classes and ensure content aligns with the new computer science standards beginning this school year.

—Kendall also presented a first reading of the district's proposed attendance procedures. The goal, Kendall said, will be for all students to be in attendance at least 94% of the time, barring medical exemptions. Last year, Kendall said, 51% of students missed at least 10 days. The new procedure, if approved would incorporate emails, text messages, postcards, notifications, and home visits at various stages of truancy, as well as a new attendance officer and attendance hearings.

—Jenni Sears has been recommended as assistant principal for South Side Elementary School. Sears began her career in education in 2014 as a music teacher at Chamberlain Elementary School. Since In 2021, Sears has served as a Teacher on Special Assignment (TOSA) at Chamberlain Elementary School, Waterford Elementary School, and Parkside Elementary School.

Dani Messick is the education and entertainment reporter for The Goshen News. She can be reached at dani.messick@goshennews.com or at 574-538-2065.