BUTLER TWP — The Butler Area School Board may discuss an update to policy language regarding nondiscrimination at an upcoming meeting.

The board had a discussion about, but took no action related to, a possible language change at Monday's meeting. The district already has a policy in place against discrimination “on the basis of race, color, age, creed, religion, sex, sexual orientation, ancestry, national origin, marital status, pregnancy or handicap/disability.”

District superintendent Brian White said he could review the policy with the district's solicitor, and updated language could be up for vote at an upcoming meeting of the school board. The policy on curriculum and instructional materials could also be reviewed.

White also said in crafting an update to the language of the policy, the board may want to avoid using terms that refer to a specific ideology or current issue like “critical race theory.”

“I know today's controversy is critical race theory, but I have lived through enough controversies to know there is something else tomorrow,” White said. “We want all students to be treated equally. They are all just as important as the person sitting next to them; that's our belief system.”

Bill Halle, school board member, initiated the conversation, asking for a discussion on the policy.

In unrelated business, the board also appointed a ninth member to the food service management company selection committee, which is going through the regular process of crafting a request for proposals for a food service provider to serve the district. The committee, according to White, is already in the middle of creating a request for proposals.

“This is something we are mandated to do every five years,” White said. “Because of COVID the state extended all the food service management companies' contracts by one year... We're doing the mandated process right now.”