Author

John Norcross

John Norcross

John Norcross is a consultant, podcaster, and community organizer based in Oconomowoc, WI. He has spent the last 25 years working in the field of organizational design and change in Europe and North America. He also works with community change agents across the Midwest on progressive causes including education, sustainability, and local governance. His background is in political economy, with a degree in political science from Carleton University, Ottawa, Canada.

COMMENTARY
Close-Up of rainbow flag with crowd In background during LGBT Pride Parade. Getty Images.

Rainbows and safe spaces: A tale of two districts

By: - July 14, 2023

On Wednesday, residents of Waukesha County went to bed having learned that Heyer Elementary School teacher Melissa Tempel had been terminated by the School District of Waukesha’s school board for expressing her criticism of the school administration’s decision not to allow the song “Rainbowland” to be sung by students at a school concert. They awoke […]

COMMENTARY

Pronoun policies, culture wars and partisan school boards in Wisconsin

By: - October 28, 2022

When a school board in Lake Country, Wisconsin approved a policy banning the display of LGBTQ Pride flags and the use of preferred pronouns, it found itself on the leading edge of  a series of similar policies enacted in school districts elsewhere in the state and across the country.  On July 26, 2022, Kettle Moraine […]