NJ school board member did nothing wrong in wearing rainbow mask

For some parents in Hunterdon County, breaking news: Gay people exist. Start dealing with it.

A controversy erupted at Hunterdon Central Regional High School when the parents group Protect Your Children tried to push the district into removing LGBTQ books from the curriculum. Hundreds of people showed up at this tense school board meeting back in February. Interestingly though most parents supported the books being there.

So did Noelle O’Donnell, chair of the board's Equity, Racism and Diversity Committee. The controversy on top of the controversy? The face mask she wore had a rainbow on it.

Gasp! Heavens no!

So of course the same Neanderthal thinking that led to complaining about the books in the first place next led two women to file an ethics complaint over her wearing this.

There was all kinds of nonsense about her favoring one group over another (yeah, a group that historically is bullied by this very type of Neanderthal thinking and has a much greater suicide rate because of it) and being biased.

How insane that the head of the Equity, Racism and Diversity committee would wear a rainbow mask, right?

Thankfully this stupid ethics filing has blown up in the faces of the fools who tried it. The NJ School Ethics Commission has not only cleared O’Donnell they voted to fine the two dopes who brought the charge $100 each for filing a frivolous complaint.

The commission wrote that the complaint’s assertion that O’Donnell didn’t advocate for all students just by advocating for these students was “flawed, imprudent and insensitive,” as reported by MyCentralJersey.com.

Further, "In today's culture and climate it is now more important than ever that all students feel included, and represented and (O'Donnell's) decisions were an attempt to support a particular group of students who felt threatened by an impending decision regarding curriculum and books.”

See? Gay people exist. Take a deep breath and put on your big girl pants. It’s going to be okay.

Opinions expressed in the post above are those of New Jersey 101.5 talk show host Jeff Deminski only.

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New Jersey high school graduation rates

The lists below show 4-year graduation rates for New Jersey public schools for the 2020-21 school year. The statewide graduation rate fell slightly, from 91% in 2019-20 to 90.6%.

The lists, which are sorted by county and include a separate list for charter schools, also include a second graduation rate, which excludes students whose special education IEPs allow them to qualify for diplomas despite not meeting typical coursework and attendance requirements.

Columns with an asterisk or 'N' indicate there was no data or it was suppressed to protect student privacy.

Average SAT scores for all NJ high schools, 2020-21

Average SAT scores for the 2020-2021 school year are listed by county, from highest to lowest. Data includes the combined score, as well as the average scores on the math and reading/writing sections.

Participation rates show the share of 12th graders in the Class of 2021 who took the SAT in 2020-21 or in prior years.

High schools aren't listed if there is no data or the number of students participating was low enough that average scores were not publicly reported to protect student privacy.