In Meadville, Monday night's school board meeting drew community members- some defended the teacher’s right to free speech, while others argued that educators should be held to a higher standard.

At the center of the growing controversy is Meadville teacher Chris Condon, who was placed on administrative leave after making a series of social media posts on his personal Facebook account regarding the death of conservative activist Charlie Kirk.

During the meeting, Superintendent Jennifer Galdon said, "Parents, teachers, and staff do better focus on educational responsibilities so our teachers can teach our students can learn."

“To be honest, I wouldn’t be here if I didn’t feel it was morally and ethically incorrect what he said,” said Ryan Young, an alumnus of the school.

The district is now actively investigating where the line falls between personal expression and professional responsibility. I spoke with a former student of Condon's.

“We didn’t see politically on both side of spectrum which is completely Okay. We would go back-and-forth and political topics which is Okay. That was what Charlie Kirk was all about and I learned a lot from Mr. Condon,” said Ryan Young.

The Meadville School Board solicitor reminded public speakers:
“During last week's meeting, we had some people comment on Charlie Kirk, but you will not be allowed to this time. This is a school board meeting, and all comments should relate to school board matters.”

“The solicitor said we weren’t specifically allowed to talk about Charlie Kirk, but to be honest I didn’t need to use his name. I’m here at American citizen and to anyone who gets assassinated for their political beliefs. It’s just wrong,” said Ryan Young.

“I was sitting there honestly got choked up myself just hearing that’s how our school board is,” said Faith Kellick.

Board member Ronnie Irwin added, “Charlie Kirk was an educator. It’s time to use this as a teachable moment. I think you guys need to sit down and talk to your kids about what they post on social media, because this year is a prime example of how much students go through — being bullied 24/7.”


“This time I actually felt better after hearing them speak. I’m glad they said that.” said Faith Kellick.

Board President Kevin Merritt got emotional, saying, “We have had to get additional security to transport kids to different schools all because of one person. Trust the process, trust the system. We will get a result. We heard you, we hear you. I have more than 150 emails… I have read all of them.”