Resolution to ban critical race theory sparks outcry at Paso Robles school board meeting
The Paso Robles school board took no action Tuesday on a resolution to essentially ban critical race theory from being taught in classrooms, after an hour of public comment that included an emotional appeal against the effort from a top administrator.
Critical race theory largely focuses on tackling racism not on an individual basis, but by shifting structures and systems to become equitable for all.
It is not taught in Paso Robles schools — nor in most primary and secondary schools, for that matter.
Yet, it was introduced as a resolution written by board President Chris Arend because the district has reportedly received multiple letters asking for critical race theory to be banned from being taught.
After a long meeting Tuesday evening, the Paso Robles Joint Unified School District Board of Trustees ultimately provided no direction to staff on whether to bring the resolution to a vote during the board’s next meeting on July 13, but members indicated that it likely would not be brought up at that time.
Instead, the board will essentially table any discussion on the topic until it gathers more information and will ask for it to be placed on the agenda of a later meeting.
Of those who attended the meeting, called in or sent letters in for public comment, the majority opposed the resolution, which makes a variety of claims about critical race theory and includes skeptical language about its value.
Among staff, the most impassioned opposition came from Deputy Superintendent Jen Gaviola, who told the board that she had “no interest in drafting a resolution” banning critical race theory from being taught in classrooms.
“I trust our employees. I believe in our board policy and our AR (administrative regulation),” Gaviola said during Tuesday’s meeting. “I am embarrassed and appalled tonight. ... I just can’t believe this is what our focus is. Our kids have been out of school for a year, and this is our focus now?”
Gaviola said that of the roughly 60 emails that the board received from community members regarding the resolution that would ban critical race theory from being taught in classrooms, “over 80%” were opposed to the resolution.
What would the resolution do?
The three-page resolution written by Arend would lay out a number of foundational principles regarding the district’s approach to critical race theory and how it should be handled in the classroom, many of which call into question its validity as a concept.
Arend said that the resolution says that students should not be taught about critical race theory, but rather that teachers should instead “inform our students what it is about.”
“I don’t want it to be a blank spot in their knowledge, but we are not going to indoctrinate them in critical race theory if I can say anything about it and that’s why I proposed this resolution,” Arend said.
Among the statements in the resolution:
• “Critical Race Theory (‘CRT’) is an ideology based on false assumptions about the United States of America and its population.”
• “The definitional foundation of Critical Race Theory involving an artificial distortion of the traditional definition of ‘racism’ is fatally flawed.”
• “Critical Race Theory is a divisive ideology that assigns moral fault to individuals solely on the basis of an individual’s race and, therefore, is itself a racist ideology.”
The resolution concludes that “Critical Race Theory is rejected and will not constitute the basis for any instruction in the PRJUSD,” before listing specific elements that cannot be taught.
In adhering to existing board policy and administrative regulation, controversial subjects — such as critical race theory — can be discussed in classrooms as long as they are presented in a balanced manner that examines all sides of the issue at hand.
If approved, the proposed resolution presented to the board Tuesday night would have bucked that board policy by requiring that critical race theory could only be taught if teachers focus “on the flaws” of the topic.
Public, board comment on the proposed resolution
Those who spoke in favor of banning critical race theory from being taught in the classroom were mostly worried that the teachings would divide students based on race and make students ashamed of the color of their skin.
One commenter, Brett King, said his son had been “a victim of critical race theory teaching” through a class at Paso Robles High School that is taught through Cuesta College.
“He was taught that he, due to his white skin, is an oppressor, and his fellow students, who were people of color as they are now called, were taught that they were oppressed by my son,” King said. “How dare they? I will not stand by when my child is told to be ashamed of his skin color.”
A majority of speakers, however, supported the concept of critical race theory because it theorizes how racism is not solely rooted in the individual but is present within systems in the United States like housing inequalities, health care disparities and more.
Jordan Martinez, a San Luis Obispo County resident and incoming preschool teacher in Cambria, said that the resolution written by Arend comes from a “place of hysteria” and is similar to the “false claims of voter fraud that swept our county ... leading to the May 4 Board of Supervisors meeting; racist comments towards (county Clerk-Recorder) Tommy Gong, and his ultimate resignation.”
Commenters against Arend’s resolution pointed out how critical race theory is not a component of Paso Robles schools’ curriculum.
“Critical race theory is a theoretical framework introduced in legal studies,” said Alexis Smith, a Paso Robles resident. “So if you’re worried about your 8-year-old being taught CRT (critical race theory), I would love to meet them because that must mean that they are in law school.”
Trustee Nathan Williams doubled down on that assertion and said that critical race theory was not in the district’s curriculum nor has it been proposed to be in the district’s curriculum. He also noted that the proposed resolution overstepped the board’s purview.
“If we pass a resolution to ban critical race theory in our schools, we are deliberately impeding academic freedom,” he said during Tuesday’s board meeting.
Williams added that should controversial subjects like critical race theory be brought up in the classroom, the board and school district has policies and procedures that clearly lay out how to deal with those conversations.
However, Trustee Dorian Baker disagreed in part with Williams and said that critical race theory, although not a course taught at schools, “just comes in” to classroom discussions.
“There’s no place for that,” Baker said during Tuesday’s meeting. “I want to make a statement that we do not support that.”
What is critical race theory?
Critical race theory was developed in the 1970s and ’80s when scholars took a deeper look into how racial inequities persisted even after landmark civil rights and anti-discrimination laws were passed.
In an interview with the Texas Tribune, Daniel HoSang, a professor of ethnicity, race and migration and American studies at Yale University, described critical race theory not as “content” or a “set of beliefs,” but rather an approach that “encourage(s) us to move past the superficial explanations that are given about equality, and suffering, and to ask for new kinds of explanations.”
A main concept of critical race theory is that racism must be addressed by shifting structures and policies.
“So (critical race theory) actually says, ‘No, we shouldn’t be preoccupied with trying to discern “Who is the racist here,” because that moves the attention away from the structures,’ ” HoSang told the Texas Tribune.
Some states have already banned teaching critical race theory in classrooms through legislation, while others are proposing to do the same.
No such bill has been brought before the California Legislature, although the state Department of Education approved a new ethnic studies model curriculum for schools. A bill currently making its way through the California State Senate proposes to make that curriculum mandatory in public schools.
Paso Robles High School will offer its first ethnic studies course in the fall. The curriculum was heavily debated by the Paso Robles school board in March but was ultimately approved.
In the statewide ethnics studies curriculum, teachers are encouraged to “familiarize themselves with current scholarly research around ethnic studies instruction, such as critically and culturally/community relevant and responsive pedagogies, critical race theory and intersectionality, which are key theoretical frameworks and pedagogies that can be used in ethnic studies research and instruction.”
However, Geoffrey Land, a social science teacher who will be teaching Paso Robles High School’s new ethnic studies course starting in the fall, emphasized that in an interview with The Tribune that critical race theory is not a part of the school’s ethnic studies curriculum.
“As a teacher of 23 years at the high school, I’ve never known my colleagues or myself to teach critical race theory or any element of critical race theory,” he said. “It’s not on our radar. It’s not been a part of our instruction. It’s not a part of the ethnic studies class.”
Land said critical race theory is a high-level academic theory that is taught at colleges and universities but seldom tackled at schools instructing students in kindergarten through 12th grade.
This story was originally published June 23, 2021 at 1:14 PM.
