Littleton school expels foreign flags from gym

Principal worried display might violate state law

Berny Morson, Rocky Mountain News

Saturday, August 26, 2006

A Littleton middle school removed 30 flags from the gym Friday, fearing that they violate a Colorado law against displaying foreign flags in state buildings.

Goddard Middle School Principal Amy Oaks said that students will express the same message of diversity by creating banners that symbolize the foreign nations.

"Perhaps I have a much more cautious interpretation of the law than other people," Oaks said. "I have no idea. I just know that we certainly wouldn't want to be in violation of the state law.

"We don't want it to be anything that anybody would say, 'Do you realize you're violating the law on the wall of your gym?' We don't want that," Oaks said.

Colorado law allows foreign flags in state buildings as part of a temporary display for educational purposes, provided they are not permanently affixed to the building.

The Goddard flags have been up since the 2003-04 school year.

"It kind of feels permanent to me," Oaks said.

The 30 flags, including a U.S. flag, represented the nationalities of Goddard students, including some from as far away as Mongolia and Eritrea.

The flags were folded in Oaks' office Friday.

She announced over the public address system her decision to remove them.

Oaks said she and an art teacher will oversee creation of the banners, to be painted on canvas.

Students will have to research the countries to come up with a theme for their banners, Oaks said.

"They're going to have to think about it," she said.

She estimated that 60 to 100 children will participate in the after-school activity.

Oaks said she has had no complaints about the foreign flags. She considered whether they violate state law after a flap this week over foreign flags in a Jefferson County classroom.

In that case, Jefferson County school officials decided the flags hung by Carmody Middle School geography teacher Eric Hamlin were covered by the educational exception.

The state law was most recently amended in 2002, when the exception for educational displays of foreign flags was added.

Phil Klein, a University of Northern Colorado geography professor who advises school districts on geography curriculums and teaching materials, said he has never heard of anyone objecting to the use of foreign flags in classroom instruction.

"I have not heard of anybody interpreting the law that way," said Klein, who works with all metro area school districts.

morsonb@RockyMountainNews.com or 303-954-5209