BYRON, Minn. – The president of the Byron teachers union, Justin Blom, said that displaying the Ukranian flag at school is a humanitarian issue, not a political issue. Blom made the point after a teacher was told to take down the Ukraine flag in her classroom. Displaying the flag is one way for kids to identify and talk about bullying, Blom said. “We teach our kids to be upstanders and not bystanders, to stand up to bullies in support of those students who are themselves bullied. And the biggest bully right now in the world is Vladimir Putin,” he said.
Blom. President of Byron teachers union. Teaches fifth grade.
Byron Schools profile
Byron is an exurb 11 miles west of Rochester on Highway 14. The School District has four schools with 2,100 students. The student-faculty ratio is 16:1. Students are in the top 5% in the state math and reading proficiency. There is a 95% graduation rate.