Incumbents and challengers for five open seats on the Rochester school board had a chance to speak directly to the public on Oct. 8.

Nine of the ten candidates running for those seats participated in a League of Women Voters of Oakland Area forum held at Rochester Hills city hall.

The forum, moderated by Jerry Burden, asked the candidates questions submitted by the audience ranging from basic issues like district budgets and policies to hot button topics like book banning and accommodating transgender students.

The perceived acrimony on the board was immediately addressed by Nesreen Sabbagh, the only candidate who was unable to attend.

“I believe together we can keep the politics out of the schools and the division it brings while letting kids be kids,” she said in an opening statement read by Burden.

Shortly after the forum began the candidates were asked how they would bridge the gap in differences on the board.

“I do worry that the scars run pretty deep on the board and I feel like the only way to move forward is to have some new representation on the board,” said challenger Shelley Lauzon.

“We have five current board members who have demonstrated the ability to function together and work together,” said board Vice President Barb Anness.

Johnathon Sesi, one of the four candidates seeking one of two two-year terms, went even further and touched on past board statements.

“I will never call somebody who disagrees with my opinion an extremist, a destroyer of public schools or try to affiliate them with white supremacy,” he said.

Trustee Jayson Blake, who is one of six candidates running for one of three open six-year terms, said the campaign season has taken its toll on the candidates.

“Everyone is pretty raw here and I hope we can get past that,” he said.

The candidates were later asked their views on males participating in girls sports and using girls locker rooms and bathrooms.

Several candidates said Michigan High School Athletic Association guidelines would apply to the sports aspect and the state Elliot-Larsen Act would apply to situations within the district.

Michigan’s Elliott-Larsen Civil Rights Act was passed in 1976 to prohibit discrimination on the basis of “religion, race, color, national origin, age, sex, height, weight, familial status, or marital status” in employment, housing, education, and access to public accommodations. On March 16, 2023 Gov. Gretchen Whitmer codified those rights by signing Senate Bill 4.

“All children need to feel safe and supported in their schools,” said Treasurer Julie Alspach.

Sesi, Lauzon, Trustee Andrew Weaver and Taara Datta Donley all said sports participation should be based strictly on biology.

“Sports have been divided by biology for a reason and it should continue to be that way,” said Weaver.

Weaver was the only candidate out of the nine to say he would not sign code of ethics or code of cooperation and conduct letters board members are asked to sign when they take office and annually during their tenures.

“It was very subjective and it could be weaponized,” Weaver said. “In my term, we have seen it weaponized by our former superintendent and the majority of our board.”

He said if he is reelected he would sign the letter if the district “takes out the subjectivity and makes a code of conduct that is tangible and enforceable”.

Candidates were also asked their views on book banning in the district.

Jayson Blake pointed out the district already has a book approval procedure in place, as well as parental objection and book opt-out policies on a case by case basis.

“I 100% support parents having a right to determine what their kids see,” said Blake. “I do not believe that parents should control what all kids see.”

“I don’t support book banning, but I also support that books need to be age appropriate and relevant to the curriculum that is being taught in our school system,” said Kaczanowski.

Weaver said having standards in place is not book banning and has introduced a policy to be enacted in Rochester schools.

“I’ve introduced a controversial materials policy which the majority of our board is not willing to entertain,” he said.

“We have to be mindful of the subjectivity of a controversial materials policy,” said Anness. “We want our policy to be a shield and not eventually to be a sword used against our district.”

There were a wide variety of responses to the role social and emotional learning curriculum and policies play in the district, but Donley touched on one area still in need of attention.

“Right now we seem to have practices that seem to protect the bully and the bigot instead of the victim,” said Donley. “That is a huge issue.”

One subject that all the candidates agreed on was they would not favor proposing or requiring the ten commandments to be posted in district schools.

“We have a variety of cultures and religions within our district and it would not be appropriate to have one over another,” said Bueltel.

The general election is Tuesday, Nov. 5.