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Struggle over R-rated movies nearing end

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By Ryan Gauthier, Staff Writer 12:50 PM Wednesday, October 28, 2009

The back-and-forth struggle over whether R-rated movies should be shown to Talawanda students appears to be nearing an end.

A verdict on the film at the center of the controversy is expected in the coming days.

Superintendent Phil Cagwin said a seven-member committee would be reviewing “American Beauty” on Wednesday, Oct. 28, assessing the film according to criteria outlined in the district’s current policy.

“They’re going to watch the film and have a pretty lengthy discussion of the appropriateness of the material,” Cagwin said. “Their written recommendation comes to me, then I share that information with the board.”

While the intention is to have the committee’s decision rendered by the end of its first meeting, Cagwin said the group technically has 10 business days after its formation to provide a recommendation.

School board members will have the final say on the material, though Cagwin said the complainant has the right to appeal their decision.

Board members directed Assistant Superintendent Kelly Spivey to revise their policy regarding supplemental materials, requiring a committee review potentially controversial items rather than placing the burden solely on administrators. The general idea is to have teachers argue why an R-rated film should be part of the curriculum, rather than consider questionable materials innocent until proven guilty.

Cagwin said the revised policy will have films undergoing the same vetting process as other materials used as part of curriculum.

“It will be similar to the way we do our material selection for curriculum, which departments revise on a six-year cycle,” Cagwin said. “If the English department wants to put in a new text, they have to put it up for adoption. This would be no different.”

School board member Robert Huff said it is up to the district to set a standard for the community, covering any potentially controversial materials that could be shown in the classroom. Huff said it seems like a double-standard to show students the same material that could get them in serious trouble outside of the classroom.

“How do we put something on screen but then not tolerate students having the same image on their cell phones or saying the same things in the classroom?” Huff said. “We need to establish a proactive policy rather than a reactive one. There has to be some reasonable screening prior to a movie being shown in a classroom.”

Fellow board member Lois Vollmer said she has a difficult time agreeing to show movies containing strong sexual content and nudity to students, as she does not see the educational value in them. Because of the amount of attention “American Beauty” has received within the community, she said the review process will likely be tainted.

“We already had a huge hullaballoo over ‘American Beauty’ and I don’t think that there would be any way in the world that it would survive a committee to come back to me to be shown,” Vollmer said. “I know that sounds terrible, but I don’t think we’re going to get a fair ruling because there’s been too much publicity over the movie.”

Contact this reporter at (513) 523-4139, ext. 86102, or at rgauthier@coxohio.com.

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