Students, parents and community members gathered for the last school board meeting of the year in Forest Hills. Recent controversy has many ready for public comment on the canceling of "Diversity Day."In the beginning, board member Leslie Rassmussen was told 'Diversity Day' was canceled due to an error."I was told it was related to a permission slip error," she said. That was not the case. In response, more than 300 students walked out in protest at Turpin and Anderson High School.“I think they just want their voices heard. These students were hurt and that’s just the reality. The students rallied. They showed grace and maturity and they put on their own diversity day. They raised about twelve thousand dollars to make that happen," Rassmussen said.Wednesday night those students along with their parents and community members would show up to the school board meeting, asking that 'Diversity Day' be reinstated. “The decision to cancel diversity day has robbed many of us from a great learning opportunity. I attended the event last year and I can say it was deeply engaging and educational," said one student. “Since Anderson Township is a predominately white community, my fellow students and I need to learn about diversity. We need to be prepared for life after high school," another student said.Among those speaking were executives of Fortune 500 companies; stating diversity, equity and inclusion are at the height of what companies are teaching their employees and that starting now is the way to go. Turpin Junior, Hannah Smith, spoke about how diversity day helps educate her friends about her culture. Barely making it through her speech, she spoke with WLWT after the meeting. "It makes me sad almost as if we are going backward instead I feel like we should be going forward. That was the purpose of diversity day to educate people not only about race but to start a conversation about how people are different in our community and we need to recognize their differences," Smith said.The school board did not mention 'Diversity Day' as part of the meeting. They also did not say whether 'Diversity Day' would return on school grounds next year.

Thursday is a big day for students as a new school year starts for some in several local school districts.It's exciting, but uncertain as COVID-19 protocols continue to be adjusted.Some schools are still deciding mask and COVID-19 protocols and on Wednesday night, the Forest Hills School District made a decision that came with cheers and jeers from parents.The meeting was full and at one point, a board member cast the incorrect vote twice.Parents appeared to have had enough before it ever really started."I just felt like (Gov. Mike) DeWine lifted that and said we could take them off and I don't want to put it back on and I don't want my children to put it back on either," parent Shawna Myers said.Parents, students, and community members all stood outside Nagel Middle School greeting school leaders with signs against masks.Their signs were on display during a meeting of the Forest Hills School Board, where masks were the task at hand."I believe that students should wear masks for their protection and for the protection of others," board member Dee Dee Choice said."I don't understand why we would do things differently when our goal shouldn't be to experiment. Our goal should be to make sure every child has the ability to learn in person," board member Dr. Leslie Rasmussen said."They struggle to learn when they can't fundamentally interact with each other. So to mask them out of fear of what might happen is outrageous," board Member Elizabeth Maier said.At the end of the night, the board decided for elementary school students, masks will be required in instructional settings, but not in hallways, restrooms or at recess.For secondary students, masks are optional.The big concerns appeared to surrounded quarantines and contact tracing.Members said last year, about 400 children were out with COVID-19 cases leading to about 4,000 in quarantine who did not get sick.Parents in masks also took part in the meeting, supporting the mask effort.Unfortunately, we were unable to catch up with them after the meeting.They appeared to support any mask policy, with one woman saying she did not want her children near unmasked kids.But those who were protesting said no mask policy is the right policy."I don't believe it'll have any effect at controlling the spread. I think the cases will continue to rise in the cold and flu season. We'll have another failed mitigation strategy," parent Scott Nelson said.As part of the motion the board passed, the school district will revisit mask protocols for schools on Sept. 13 basing any changes on data and the situation at the time.The Forest Hills School District includes Anderson and Turpin high schools and Ayer, Maddux, Mercer, Sherwood, Summit and Wilson elementary schools.It serves more than 7,300 students in Anderson Township and the Village of Newtown.