Andrew Laverdiere of Bangor speaks Thursday during the public comment period of a Maine School Administrative District 11 board meeting in Gardiner. Joe Phelan/Kennebec Journal

GARDINER — Around 50 people showed up to the Gardiner-area school board’s regular business meeting to speak about the proposed school-based health center and the behavior of some board members.

People from the community and some from outside of it filled every chair at the Maine School Administrative District 11 Superintendent’s Office, and spilled out into the hallway outside as there was not enough space to accommodate all who turned out.

Thursday night’s meeting followed a contentious meeting Wednesday where several people called on board member Michelle Tucker to resign and questioned if her criticalness of the proposed school-based health center strays from the school board’s goal of putting students first, as the center would provide many students with free health care.

The Merle E. Peacock Jr. Board Room was standing room only Thursday and an overflow crowd stood outside in a hallway watching a livestream on a laptop during a Maine School Administrative District 11 board meeting in Gardiner. Joe Phelan/Kennebec Journal

Although the proposed school-based health center was not on Thursday’s agenda, the public was not deterred from sharing thoughts on both sides of the issue. Nearly half of those attending spoke up during a comment period that required a board vote to extend so all could be heard.

Several people questioned logistics around the clinic, including its funding source and how it would operate inside of Gardiner Area High School.

Board Chair Becky Fles speaks Thursday during a Maine School Administrative District 11 board meeting in Gardiner. Joe Phelan/Kennebec Journal

Board Chairperson Becky Fles said the school district is still working with HealthReach, the nonprofit that would run the health center, to develop a memorandum of understanding, which was requested by the board.

Angela Hardy, assistant superintendent filling in for Superintendent Patricia Hopkins, said the MOU process is not the usual procedure the school-based health clinics follow with other public schools, so it’s taking time to complete.  

Once that document is final, it should provide answers to the public’s questions.

“The memorandum of understanding is with their attorney and ours and it’s taking more time than we thought,” Fles said. “I have no control over how fast they work on that, but the MOU is coming and I hope all of your questions can be answered.”

The school-based health center has become a point of controversy for the Gardiner-area school board and the district’s communities as well as for people outside the district who have shown up to oppose the move.

Several people brought handmade signs to Wednesday night’s special board meeting that called on Tucker to resign. After the meeting one ended up on board member Sean Focht’s vehicle. Focht, along with Tucker, have been vocal in opposing the proposed health center. Tucker alleges the center will provide gender-affirming care to minors, although HealthReach officials have said the clinic follows the same law as primary care providers. 

Pittston resident Justin Basinger said Thursday he placed the sign on Focht’s car, saying he wanted to mess with the school board member. 

“If you want to approach it honestly and have an honest conversation, I’m OK with that,” Focht said to Basinger on Thursday. 

Allen Sardines, leader of the Maine chapter of Parents Rights In Education, argues with board members about displaying signs during a Maine School Administrative District 11 board meeting Thursday in Gardiner. Joe Phelan/Kennebec Journal

Allen Sarvinas, a Topsham resident and director of Parents Rights in Education, a nonprofit organization that bills itself as training parent activists to take back school boards, carried a sign into Thursday’s meeting alleging the school board has kept the school-based health center discussions away from parents and another sign that referenced transgender students participating in school sports. 

Audience members told Sarvinas to take that poster away, as it had a photo of a minor on it, which he did after a police officer on scene told him to.

Board member Matthew Lillibridge said the board navigated the coronavirus pandemic — with remote learning, mask mandates and opposition to those requirements — with more ease than the school-based health center.

Fles, noting the tension, said the board has never kept anything from parents regarding the health center. In October, the board hosted a question-and-answer session that drew community members and media attention.  

“This emotional climate has unfortunately manifested as disrespectful communications both within and outside of meetings. Hurtful social media posts targeting board members and staff have been proliferated with misinformation and falsehoods,” Fles said.