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Critical race theory battle reaches Lucia Mar Unified School District

June 23, 2021

Lucia Mar Unified School District Board President Don Stewart

By KAREN VELIE

Lucia Mar Unified School District Board members praised social emotional learning programs as tools for building character and diminishing behavioral issues, while parents argued it is a form of critical race theory that pits groups of people against each other, during a contentious board meeting on Tuesday.

Assistant Superintendent Hillery Dixon touted the benefits of adopting the Character Strong curriculum for high school students, noting some students are only able to learn “social emotional coping strategies” at school.

Dixon, who said she thoroughly reviewed the curriculum, did not find critical race theory in the lesson plans. She did, however, find portions of the curriculum came “a little close” on discussions of bias and prejudice.

Trustee Dee Santos noted that some students would rather learn about social issues from their teachers and not from their parents.

In opposition to the proposed curriculum, parents argued that students have lost enough educational time during the past year, and the district should focus on the three “Rs,” rather than teaching ideologies and providing counseling in the classroom. But primarily, parents were concerned that their children would be taught a “divisive” critical race theory style ideology.

Jennet Holt, the mother of three students, met with Dixon to examine the curriculum before the meeting. And while she agreed it is important to stomp out prejudice, she asked the board to reject the Character Strong curriculum.

“What we looked at, on its face value, seems very innocent,” Holt said. “But what it is, is priming our kids’ hearts and minds to receive a greater message at this point. We don’t need to instill this in our kids and have this class time dedicated to talking about this, and have these kinds of feelings, like should I hate this person? It is actually bringing all the kids into a group think.”

Trustee Chad Robertson said critical race theory has no place in the classroom, and is not in the Character Strong curriculum. Board President Don Stewart said he trusts staff to “vet this stuff properly.”

In support of concerned parents, trustees Vern Dahl, Dee Santos and Dawn Meek wanted to bring the discussion back at a meeting in August to allow parents and staff time to further review the Character Strong curriculum.

During the discussion, one of the female board members whispered, “I do not want to cave to these people.”

In the end, the board voted 4-3 to approve the Character Strong curriculum, with Dahl, Dee and Meek dissenting.


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Let us parents teach our children that people are to be judged by the content of their character, not by the color of their skin.


As a parent…to Lucia Mar School District- NO. Do not don’t bring this into schools. Instead, focus on reading, writing and, arithmetic.


29

The picture of the guy at the top of the article tells you all you need to know about whether or not they are teaching critical race theory


-2

CRT is racism at its worse. We should not be distinguishing people based on their color, but that’s what the pinheads on our school boards are considering because it’s backed by the mafia, er, uh, I mean the Teachers Union.


34

The chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Gen. Mark Milley, responded sharply to questions from Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Fla., on Wednesday about the examination of critical race theory in the U.S. military.


Gaetz originally posed his questions on the theory to Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, the nation’s first Black defense secretary. Gaetz cited unnamed military members criticizing the military’s recent “stand down” to deal with extremism and then asked about how the Defense Department should “think about critical race theory.”


https://youtu.be/3uIZ4C3Y0Ng


13

An indistinguishable curriculum was applied in China a while back…some of you historians may remember….the only difference was they had to use class instead of race…rich people were bad and communism is better….here they are using white people are bad and socialism is better…

Its un American and must be halted…its not good for America and CRT is wrong for our schools….


60

An “indistinguishable curriculum” so, in your own words can you explain CRT. Teaching about our history bothers you? Wow.. It’s interesting to see the perspectives go right down party lines which happen to coincide with Fox news orders. years ago, we had people I’ve known my entire life go on and on about how Obama ruined Twinkies. THEN, How the whiners on a cruise ship were so upset that their socks got wet in their stateroom. Really? Hannity was calling people on a cruise a bunch of whiners because Human wasted ankle deep was sloshing around in their rooms. The same people that demanded to know every single detail about Benghazi doesn’t ask about the Niger raid that had Americans slaughtered and recordings of the young men BEGGING for help went unanswered and the attack on the Capital was “Spontaneous” Even though people flew in from many states with matching shirts they had made but what a coincidence. Same font, same lettering and the SAME people deny it was an insurrection.


-31

I’d rather hear your explanation of CRT….what I will say is if we have to be perfect to be good none of us will pass…in race relations or anything else…teach our kids…all of our kids how to succeed not who to blame if you don’t…..


21

USA world ranking in math (38th). Science ranking (24th). Glad we got our priorities straight.


107

Here’s another statistic you might add to your list:


The U.S. has a 17.8% poverty rate, higher than many of the nations we are competing with in the intellectual and economic fields.


It’s absolutely shameful that nearly one in five Americans lives in poverty, considering the U.S. economy generates about $21 trillion every year. Unfortunately, the bulk of that money goes to the ultra-wealthy who pay very little in taxes—reports say that Jeff Bezos pays about 1.1% tax on his ever-increasing fortune.


-49

Nothing stops you from getting yourself out of poverty, if you are willing and able to do so.


Also, the USA does not have a finite amount of wealth. Anyone…ANYONE…can create the next best thing, and be the next Bezos. Just like Bezos was the next Sam Walton, who was the next Henry Ford, who was the next Eli Whitney etc.


BTW, those super rich people? That 1% group? Altogether, pay nearly half of all the income tax in America. The top 10% pay well over half the total income tax received by the IRS.


Yes, the rich pay oodles of taxes. Yes, huge corporations pay huge oodles of taxes. And they do it all year long, not just in April. But nice try with using your own made up “facts”.


41

First, let’s see, 1) born in a single parent substance addicted household, 2) poor schools, 3) profiled, 4) dangerous area, 5) no family or community support, 6) lacking churching, 7) put down from the get go … yeppers … pull yourself up by the bootstraps you lazy FIVE year old.

Second, the super rich pay little to no taxes.

https://www.propublica.org/article/the-secret-irs-files-trove-of-never-before-seen-records-reveal-how-the-wealthiest-avoid-income-tax

I can go through the economics of some of the tax dodges, if you like.

Messy, try living in the real world.


-30

Yeah you took the whole capitalism thing hook line and sinker. Poverty is entirely optional but the fairy tale of being “the next bezos” keeps us rooting to lower taxes on the rich because we hope someday we will be one. That’s what the musk’s and bezos and trump’s love to tell you while they keep you working to make them richer while you stay dirt poor. The wealthiest Americans pay next to nothing in taxes, they pencil in a yearly salary of say 500k on paper working for their corporation and pay 27%+- taxes on that while their mass amounts of assets allow them to borrow any amount from any bank at an interest rate of +-3% because you can’t get taxed on money you’re being loaned and paying interest on. Simple loophole but we will never make enough to exploit it just like the system was created to do, but hey maybe we’ll be the innovator, you know, like Elon musk, who bought someone else’s idea and thinks humans can live on Mars. Once ina life time genius right there.


1

A direct result of the failing public education system. They’re producing psychologically weak and feeble individuals. Their education level for success in life has been in decline for decades now and we are unfortunately reaping what we sowed. These Progressive political agendas have been railroading our education system into Socialism. Your right, Socialist like Jeff Bezos, Bernie Sanders, Ilahn Omar, Alexandria Oxycodone Cortez and many other leftist are becoming ultra-wealthy.


28

Common, your comments are just partisan jargon. A waste of time.


-35

And yours?


2

“A direct result of the failing public education system. They’re producing psychologically weak and feeble individuals.”


The crowds supporting the lies about the 2020 election are a prefect example of that. Also the vaccines make you a 5g magnet that can be tracked, fear of smart meters as they type away on the iphone that tracks the user constantly.


“life has been in decline for decades now”


We can thank the GQP for that and everyone who voted for them and the trickle down plan.


-23

I can’t help it if some want bury their head in the sand and defend this failing education system. If anything good has come out of the China virus, it’s the exposure of the public school system. Parents are pulling the kids from them and home schooling, of sending to private schools.


Watch what’s coming from the state of California for the classrooms. The current exodus from public school will increase further.


I have no idea about vaccines and 5g magnets, smart meters or tracking on their i-phone’s. Nor do I care to hear it. I guess your tin-foil hat is better than most.


And yes, the education level pertaining to success in life’s challenges from our public schools HAS been declining for decades. They’re teaching them to be victims in life instead of how be victor’s in life. If your good with that, then your also part of the problem.


23

CommonSenseGuy-


You may have common sense but if you cannot spell and use grammar correctly in your posts, no one will take you seriously. Please look up contractions and understand the concept of when to use them. This was taught to all students in the 3rd grade. It is really difficult to read posts about the ‘failing education system ‘ written by someone who does not know when to use you’re and your correctly.


-11

Thanks for the rebuke and words of correction. I do appreciate it. I will work on improving. I look forward to you holding all who comment here to the same standard.


19

Easy there North County Lady, typos are common when using the voice option on cell phones.


8

The top one percent of earners ($540k of more), pay approximately 40 percent of Fed income taxes. The top 10 percent pay 71 percent.


Yeah, a few Bezos types cheat and get out of it but by enlarge, upper middle class and wealthy wage earners pay the most. Just a fact.


“The problem with socialism is eventually you run out of other people’s money.”


-Margaret Thatcher-


19

“Board President Don Stewart said he trusts staff to ‘vet this stuff properly'”


I agree with Mr. Stewart. It’s a shame that Mr. Arend in Paso didn’t use the same philosophy. Instead, it appears that those white parents who have become paranoid about CRT have simply been listening to way too much Fox News, which has mentioned the theory more than 1,300 times in the last 4 months with a phenomenal number of distortions baked in to that coverage.


I suggest these board members, like Mr. Arend, actually go out to the classroom and see what exactly is being taught. I think they’ll find teachers sticking to an excellent curriculum which has been developed over many years.


-95

You must watch a lot of Fox News to get to 1300! Maybe there is some hope for you.


29

I was formerly a regular Fox viewer—huge fan of Shep Smith, Chris Wallace and Megyn Kelly. Unfortunately, the Trumpist Know-Nothings pushed these people out.


No, didn’t get this from Fox, but Media Matters does a good job chronicling these things.


https://www.mediamatters.org/fox-news/fox-has-mentioned-critical-race-theory-nearly-1300-times-past-35-months


-32

Curious, how many times did the ABC, CBS, NBC, CNN each mention the wholly proven totally false narrative of Trump and Russian collusion?


Hillary’s destroyed Emails?


Hunter Biden using the N-word repeatedly in correspondence?


Tell us that 5 Capitol Police officers were killed on Jan 6?


Then you tell us that local schools use an excellent curriculum, while we rank near the bottom of all industrial nations in basic math, reading, and science? That’s not the excellence we want!


53

Have you looked at the required reading for grades 7-12?


-3

Let’s not overlook a discussion on short people. These people have been overlooked, look down upon and generally never get a leadership role. A critical short theory program that addresses these issues would be a down to earth lesson, providing a level playing field that affords leadership opportunities regardless of size.


77

Well said! Love all the puns.


31

Um, I guess you never heard of Napoleon?


-55

That’s a tall order. Let’s not get a head of ourselves with criti-sizing.


38

There are some shortcomings in his reply, but I still look up to Jorge Estrada, even know the long and short of it is……measure up or get passed over!!!


12