Namesake Vote

USD 345 Board of Education Unanimously Adopted a Resolution to Disavow Association with Fred A. Seaman
Posted on 11/08/2021
The USD 345 Seaman School District Board of Education adopted a resolution to disavow any association with Fred A. Seaman, given Fred A. Seaman’s history as “an educator, a politician, and an exalted cyclops in the Ku Klux Klan.” Going forward, the school district is “to be associated with the Seaman community and its long and proud history that has developed over the past 100 plus years, not the individual who initially founded the high school,” per the resolution adopted unanimously on Monday, November 8, 2021. 

The resolution condemns racism, the beliefs of the KKK and affirms the district’s position as “an increasingly diverse school district that values and supports the personal identities of all of our school students and staff, while acknowledging that more work must be done to address the issues of racism and bullying that negatively affect the educational experiences of some students and staff.”

The approval of this resolution affirms the district’s commitment to combating racism in the district's schools whose mission is to “prepare each student for lifelong success through strong and healthy relationships, rigorous and relevant learning, and a responsive and caring culture that maximizes student talents, aspirations, and community contributions.”

“The action taken by this board tonight is an incremental step towards removing racism in our district,” said USD 345 Board President Keith Griffin. “By separating from Fred A. Seaman, this board is supporting that our community is larger than one person, and does not support or uphold actions of Fred A. Seaman. The approval of this resolution effectively removes all ties to Fred A. Seaman in name and association. We stand united with our community in striking down racism in any form, and recognize the name Seaman is synonymous with our community.”  

“I believe this resolution represents the values of diversity, equity, and inclusion of our school district in accordance with our mission,” said Superintendent Dr. Steve Noble. “This has been an intense topic with preserving history on one side and providing a healthy learning environment for all on the other. I have found both sides to be compelling, but I find our students, who have experienced bullying and racism, to be most compelling. We are against racism and all types of bullying and strive for an inclusive environment for everyone. Those issues deserve our full attention right now and I am hopeful that our community can support and actively embrace that work. As I have stated before, our history is important and so is our future.”

Click here to view the resolution.