June 11, 2024 | By Lisa Scagliotti

*The Pride flag flies below the U.S. flag as graduates, family, friends and school staff gather in front of Harwood following Saturday’s commencement. Photo by Gordon Miller*

The Pride flag flying for the past three weeks on the flagpole in front of Harwood Union Middle/High School was stolen over the weekend, Harwood administrators announced on Tuesday.

In a letter to school students, staff and families, Superintendent Mike Leichliter along with Co-Principals Megan McDonough and Laurie Greenberg shared the news of the theft and promised to replace the flag which was to fly through the end of June in observance of Pride Month.

Based on reviewing security camera footage, school officials said they determined that “at 11:57 p.m. on Saturday, June 8, 2024, two unidentified individuals lowered the United States flag and Pride flag from the flagpole at Harwood Union High School. The individuals then immediately raised the U.S. flag again and stole the Pride flag,” school officials said in their communication.

Leichliter said the people involved were wearing clothing with hoods and they could not be identified from the footage. School leaders ask that anyone with information about the incident contact the school administration. The incident also has been reported to Vermont State Police, Leichliter said. The Vermont State Police also has an anonymous tipline where the public may submit information to assist with an investigation.

This is the third year that a Pride flag has flown at Harwood during June in observance of National Pride Month.

“June is Pride Month and dedicated to the celebration and commemoration of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) pride. Since 2022 Harwood students have shown overwhelming support in asking the HUUSD School Board to raise the Pride flag at Harwood to support our LGBTQ+ students as well as in commemoration of the larger LGBTQ+ community,” the letter from the administrators explains.

“The school is securing a replacement flag and will once again raise it through the month of June as approved by the HUUSD school board,” school leaders said.

The Harwood Unified Union School Board last month approved a request from the Harwood High School Gender and Sexuality Alliance club to fly the LGBTQIA+ community pride flag starting May 17 through the end of June.

This year’s request asked that the flag be raised in May to coincide with an event the school club was hosting on May 18, the Outright Vermont Queer & Allied Youth Summit. In reviewing the flag request, the school board also looked over data from a student survey. The district flag policy asks that requests to fly a flag other than the U.S. or Vermont state flag be accompanied by a survey to gauge support in the school community.

This year, the Pride flag request had a survey with 250 responses — 62% in favor and 38% opposed to flying the pride flag. In 2023, a similar survey received 297 responses but found 78% favored the request. School board member Life LeGeros of Duxbury, who chairs the board’s Equity Committee, at the time called the drop in support for the flag display “a very troubling trend.”

On Tuesday, the school co-principals and superintendent expressed disappointment in the hostile act. “It is disappointing to know that individuals in our community would display an openly hostile attitude and disrespect the voice of our student body. These actions are unacceptable and do not represent the values and character of our schools,” they wrote.

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