EDUCATION FREEDOM
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Funds students, not systems. Unfortunately, school districts and unions hold all of the power in areas without educat...
Resources Issue: Schools
In 60 Seconds: Education Freedom
Template Letter: Refusal to Sign Code of Conduct Email
*PDF Download: Refusal to Sign Code of Conduct Email
In the recent past, the code of conduct issued by your local school district was used to simply state common sense rules. But no longer.
Now, school districts across the country incorporate political messages into these documents, which are used to indoctrinate students. While simple rules, like “don’t hit each other” and “wear appropriate clothing,” can be found in these codes, they are now often accompanied by other stipulations that violate students’ constitutional rights.
So-called “equity” initiatives include bias incident reporting systems, penalties for “misgendering” and “deadnaming” students, and include extremely narrow interpretations of what constitutes “hate speech.”
I object to these documents being used to indoctrinate children in taxpayer funded public schools and therefore refuse to sign this code of conduct.
Here’s the template letter:
Dear [Insert Principal’s Name],
This email is to inform you that we will not be signing the district’s code of conduct because it violates students’ rights.
Mandating preferred pronouns that are contrary to a student’s biological
sex is in violation of the 1st Amendment. Bias incident reporting systems, also detailed in our district’s code of conduct, restrict free speech and are being challenged in courts across the country. Finally, our district’s policy that bathroom and locker room use is based on gender rather than sex is a serious threat to the safety of female students in vulnerable spaces.
Please understand that our refusal to sign this document is a polite request that our school board members review and reconsider the policies that violate student rights and threaten their safety.
Thank you for your time and thoughtful consideration.
Sincerely,
[Your Name]
In 60 Seconds: Title IX, Bostock, And Women’s Sports
*PDF Download: In 60 Seconds – Title IX, Bostock, and Women’s Sports
In 1972, Congress passed Title IX to expand opportunities for women and girls in education. Since then, America has witnessed an explosion of women’s high school and college sports. The recent U.S. Supreme Court ruling, Bostock v. Clayton County, threatens that progress, and puts women’s sports in jeopardy.
Here’s the issue of Title IX, Bostock, and Women’s Sports in 60 seconds:
What’s at Stake:
In 1972, Congress passed Title IX to expand opportunities for women and girls in
education. Since then, America has witnessed an explosion of women’s high school and
college sports. The recent U.S. Supreme Court ruling, Bostock v. Clayton County,
threatens that progress, and puts women’s sports in jeopardy.
If applied to Title IX, Bostock could require (not just allow) schools to let male athletes
play on female teams and against female athletes. For team sports, the result will be
fewer roster spots for women and girls. And, in head-to-head competitions, the result
will be fewer titles and championships for female athletes.
In the realm of athletics, biological sex differences matter. Women have fought long
and hard for equal athletic opportunities. Ignoring the physiological differences
between male-bodied athletes and female-bodied athletes will inevitably erode some
of those gains.
Title IX, Bostock, and Women’s Sports:
Title IX prohibits schools that receive federal money from discriminating “on the basis
of sex.” The statute applies to all aspects of education, including athletics. Title IX’s
regulations allow schools to operate “separate teams for members of each sex.” Given
the competitive advantage that male athletes generally have over female athletes, these
regulations play an important role in expanding athletic opportunities for women and
girls.
Bostock may undo federal regulations and decades of precedent. In Bostock v. Clayton
County, the Supreme Court held that an employment policy that takes biological sex
into consideration is discriminatory—even if it treats members of both sexes equally. If
applied to Title IX, a school that denies a male athlete or a transgender athlete the
opportunity to play on a women’s team discriminates “because of sex” since the
decision would have been different but-for the biological sex of the athlete.
Addressing Misperceptions:
In 60 Seconds: Child Care
- *PDF Download: In 60 Seconds – Child Care
We all want American children to be well cared for and ready for school. But the government should not unfairly subsidize one type of childcare (daycare/preschool) at the expense of all families.
Instead, we should empower all families to make the choices they feel are best for their children.
Here’s the issue of child care in 60 seconds:
What’s at Stake
We all want children well cared for and ready for school. But government shouldn’t favor one arrangement (daycare/preschool) over others. Instead, we should empower all families to make the best choices for their unique situations.
Most parents prefer family or home-based daycare.
- Most working mothers would prefer to work less and spend more time with their children. High taxes and living costs make it difficult for families to live on one salary.
- Between 2005 and 2017, the number of home-based childcare providers fell by about 50 percent
Unfortunately, governments tend to subsidize larger, institutional childcare centers, making it harder for home-based centers to compete, and leaving families with fewer options.
Institutional daycare is parents’ least preferred option.
- 53 percent of married and 40 percent of single mothers think one parent staying home is best for children.
- Just 6 percent of parents think a quality daycare center is optimal.
Greater daycare or preschool enrollment does NOT improve outcomes and may cause harm.
- A federal study of Head Start showed no academic benefits and some emotional harms.
- While intensive programs can help very at-risk students, there’s no evidence of benefits for the general population.
The Better Way Forward:
Make daycare more affordable.
- A Mercatus Center study found that low child-staff ratios did not improve the quality of child care, but significantly increased costs.
- Increasing child-staff ratios by one infant, for example, could “reduce the annual cost of child care by between $850 and $1,890 per child across all states, on average.
Policymakers should support all families.
Rather than increasing subsidies for daycare, policymakers should help all families with young children by reducing tax and regulatory burdens and supporting strong, flexible labor markets so families can make the childcare decision that they feel is best.
Addressing Misperceptions
In 60 Seconds: Parental Rights In Education
In 60 Seconds – Parental Rights
What’s at Stake
Public school students are being used by activists as political pawns
As a result of teachers union actions and overzealous school district policies, students in public school districts across the country have been:
- Denied access to in-person learning. Many have fallen behind as a result—and have not caught up.
- Forced to wear masks in the classroom despite negligible evidence of any health benefits and growing concern of harm.
- Taught components of Critical Race Theory (CRT), a deeply-flawed theory that divides students and teaches them to mistrust one another.
- Exposed to age inappropriate sexual topics. Some schools are actively transitioning children without parental consent. Anti-parent tactics are being employed in pursuit of a leftist agenda.
- Schools are withholding pertinent information from parents, such as the classroom curriculum and their child’s gender identity.
- Those who dare to speak out have been labeled “domestic terrorists” by the FBI, run out of public schools, or targeted by school board officials.
Students Deserve Better
Parents should be kept informed and be involved in all decision-making when it comes to the education of their children
- As parents, we know what is best for our children. To ensure that children are provided with the educational opportunities they need to succeed in life, parents should be in the driver’s seat.
- Educators have an obligation to keep parents informed about their child’s educational experience and the curriculum they are using in the classroom.
- Masking should be an individual and parent-driven choice for children who are at low risk for disease related to COVID-19. Whatever decision parents make, schools have a responsibility to treat all children with dignity and respect.
- Parents need more leverage. Instead of funding systems, funding should follow students so parents can make educational choices that reflect their values.
Addressing Misperceptions
