BANGOR, Maine — Inauguration Day is always a historic event -- but in 2021, it's getting perhaps even more attention because of our nation's political divide. That means Maine's public schools have had to determine how to cover Wednesday's history -- and some have chosen different means to do so.
Last Friday, the Bangor School Department released a statement, announcing it will not be live-streaming the presidential inauguration because of a "threat of potential violence", citing consideration for students' "emotional health" and a "safe learning environment". Instead, teachers will have the option of talking about clips and highlights in class on Thursday. That procedure still applies, though a number of Bangor public schools have moved to remote learning this week because of the pandemic.
The Bangor School Department's interim superintendent Kathy Harris-Smedberg says community reaction to that decision has been mixed.
"I think it's one of those positions that it's kind of a no-win situation," Harris-Smedberg expressed to NEWS CENTER Maine, adding, "It has generated a lot of email to me -- I'll be honest with you there."
Harris-Smedberg says on a more logistical level, the time of the inauguration also interferes with the lunch period -- and she says it is her understanding it has been live-streamed in the past anyway. This year, the department wanted to be sure to take extra precautions because of political polarization and a desire to fuel the most productive conversations.
"We're not in any way trying to stop children from understanding it and seeing it and experiencing it," Harris-Smedberg said. "We're trying to find a way to do it in a way that is most beneficial."
Across the river, the Brewer School Department is taking a slightly different approach, allowing teachers to make individual decisions about how they handle Inauguration Day.
"There's academic choices that get to be made by staff members for their curriculums," Gregg Palmer, the superintendent for the Brewer School Department, said, noting that in the face of upsetting or unprecedented events during a live stream, "We certainly trust our teachers to use their judgment and monitor that."
Inauguration Day is just one example of the challenges teachers are facing during a politically-polarized era. Mark Brewer is a professor of political science at the University of Maine at Orono. He says moderating these conversations is crucial to finding middle ground in politics.
"Getting to a point where things are less polarized, more civil -- if it happens, it's going to be very hard work," Brewer said.
That work, though, could help us come together and move forward as a country.
"I think it's especially important in some ways for our kids to think about it -- because it's not only the world they're living in. It's the world they're inheriting."