At first, police expected fireworks at Conejo Valley Unified School District's first board meeting of the school year Tuesday night, but it had as much zip as a handful of sparklers.

Two months after hundreds of conservative protesters and liberal counter-protesters locked horns outside of district offices during a June 21 board meeting, both sides called off plans to turn out in numbers, each citing fear of violence from the other. 

Thousand Oaks Police Chief Jeremy Paris said police had been in conversation with both groups in the buildup to the meeting and that both pivoted in the last week, saying "they were not coming out."

Liberal and conservative activists have clashed at Conejo Valley Unified board meetings for years over issues ranging from sex education to history curriculum. Those clashes have picked up steam in recent months with three of five board seats up for election in November. 

Liberal candidates have dominated the last two elections, winning every seat on the board, though vocal conservatives have protested every step of the way, most recently over a classroom conversation on transgender identity. 

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The board room at Conejo Valley Unified School District offices was a far cry from full when board members emerged from closed session at 6 p.m. Tuesday. Even with a brief delay due to a broken phone and string of dial-in public comments organized by liberal activists, the opening public comment session was only about an hour, 90 minutes shorter than the prior meeting. 

On Monday, organizers from Indivisible Conejo, a progressive activist group, and Conejo Together, a political action committee behind progressive board shake-ups in the last two elections, issued a joint statement saying they had instructed supporters not to attend the meeting. 

"In the wake of numerous instances of threats and intimidation our advocates have experienced at recent meetings, and the continuing escalation of anti-public education rhetoric both locally and nationwide, we believe it is irresponsible to ask our members to put themselves in danger," the statement says.

Mary Ann Van Zuyle, one of Conejo Together's co-founders, said members had told organizers they didn't feel safe after the last meeting. 

"It's like, oh, my God, this is not safe," Van Zuyle said. "We felt like we had a responsibility to our members to discourage them from attending. It's just scary how violent our culture is right now."

Steve Schneider, a conservative activist who has become one of the faces of recent protests, said he'd told police a week prior that he wouldn't be attending the meeting after receiving "information showing that Antifa (was) planning something dangerous," referring to the anti-fascist movement that organizes against right-wing demonstrators. 

"We had some concerns about safety," he said before Tuesday's meeting. "I'm telling everyone don't show up."

But a group identifying itself as Conejo Valley Antifascists on its Twitter account @CAntifascists said they were “covertly monitoring the meeting” to document activity “meant to intimidate or threaten the LGBTQI community and our school board.”

“We had no plans to engage physically unless vulnerable people were made to feel unsafe. We never planned anything ‘dangerous,’” the account administrator wrote via direct message without providing a name. 

A few individuals from both sides still attended at the meeting. 

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Maria Shaw, a Newbury retiree, brought a copy of a local newspaper criticizing the district's response to the elementary school conversation on transgender identity. 

"I will be at every single board meeting," she said. "There's nothing more important (than) making sure children are being educated properly."

Andrew Goetze, also a retiree from Newbury, said he'd attended a few meetings out of curiosity and in an effort to support "the good side." 

"I'm against the thugs that showed up last time," he said. "I'm on the progressive side. I hope this is not the new norm here."

Even with the small audience, only a few stayed past the end of public comment. 

Jon Cummings, founder of Indivisible Conejo, said in a text he was "happy" to claim victory on the night. 

"When extremists were shamed into staying home, trustees got space to work – a big win for our community!" the group wrote on Twitter. 

Both conservative and liberal activists said they were keeping their eyes on November's elections.

Schneider said he planned to be back at the next meeting as long as safety concerns were allayed. 

"We don't need to be at this one. We need to put this in the shoes of our campaign and the people running right now," he said.

Van Zuyle echoed his sentiment. "It has just gotten out of hand," she said. "We're being prudent, we're being responsible and we're gonna win the friggin' election."

Isaiah Murtaugh covers education for the Ventura County Star in partnership with Report for America. Reach him at isaiah.murtaugh@vcstar.com or 805-437-0236 or follow him on Twitter @isaiahmurtaugh and @vcsschools. Support his work with a tax-deductible donation to Report for America.