Elmbrook School Board remains vigilant against bringing critical race theory into classrooms
As kids enjoy the dog days of summer, their parents filed into the Elmbrook School District office on Tuesday to again make their arguments about critical race theory, which has been thrust to the forefront of the education conversation across the state in recent years.
Critical race theory centers on the idea that racism is systemic — that racial injustice is woven into the fabric of many American systems and institutions, thereby causing disparities and perpetuating the oppression of people of color.
As the School Board discussed textbook materials for five high school classes and the whole of the elementary school social studies classes, the conversation quickly shifted to whether any of the textbooks included critical race theory.
The materials were eventually approved, but not before a discussion between board members and Emily Greiber, the district's director of elementary instruction, who assured members that the materials followed the board's previous direction on the topic.
Board member Linda Boucher, who wore a button opposing critical race theory at the meeting, was the first to speak up, asking for a guarantee that critical race theory was not found within the curriculum.
Greiber explained that in response to the community and previous school board decisions, in the previous school year a committee was formed to vet material that could be deemed “inappropriate” or not in line with the board's vision.
“If it was sensitive topics that would not be relevant to teaching the outcomes in our curriculum, then those weren't included,” said Greiber.
Kathy Lim, the newest board member, said it's important that teachers stay within the board's guidelines, and ensuring they are prepared to do this is a priority.
“It’s a very polarizing world right now, but we also want to make sure that we are teaching,” said Lim. “We are a teaching institution; kids need to learn to read and write and do math.”
How parents responded to the materials
Public comment at the meeting was largely positive about the proposed textbooks.
“I think it's so incredibly important that our students really understand how to discern between materials, what's factually based and what is simply a theory, and I think that these resources will help our students do that,” said one parent.
But some parents on social media were not happy with Boucher’s button. “Remember, school board is supposed to be ‘non-partisan,” said one parent in a tweet.
Critical race theory was originally discussed at a Elmbrook School Board meeting in May 2021 after a group of 1,400 Elmbrook School District alumni signed a petition seeking to improve education on racial injustice in schools in June 2020.
On June 8, 2021, the Elmbrook School Board voted to leave what it labeled "equity principles" out of its strategy plan.
While there was relatively little resistance to the specific materials presented at the meeting, the conversation on critical race theory could foreshadow a continued conversation around the topic as the start of school inches closer.
Beck Andrew Salgado can be reached at 512-568-4070 or Bsalgado@gannett.com. Follow him on Twitter at @Beck_Salgado.
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This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Critical race theory continues to be hot topic in Elmbrook Schools
