Local schools do not plan on teaching Critical Race Theory

As parents and educators across the country debate Critical Race Theory, leaders of area schools have one consensus -- it will not be taught in their classrooms.

According to Kristin Tallent, communications director for Cape Girardeau Public Schools, the district has no intention of teaching Critical Race Theory to its students.

"As a district, we follow the Missouri Learning Standards, which are set by the Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education," Tallent said. "That is always our North Star when it comes to establishing our curriculum."

The Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) learning standards define learning expectations for Missouri students from kindergarten to 12th grade. Critical Race Theory is not included in those standards.

DESE's learning standards do not dictate curriculum, according to the department's website. Local districts make their own decisions about curriculum, instructional strategies and textbooks.

Jackson R-2 School District follows Missouri's Learning Standards, according to Matt Lacy, the district's assistant superintendent.

Lacy said the district had no plans to teach Critical Race Theory in its schools.

In his opinion, it would not fit into curriculum for students in grades K-12.

"It's not something we've considered for K-12, even after researching it, just because it's a theory that's been developed and taught in upper-level courses in graduate school," Lacy said.

As of press time, the Scott City R-1 School District had not responded to several requests for comment on the issue.

What is Critical Race Theory?

Critical Race Theory first emerged in the mid-1970s. Legal scholars including Richard Delgado, Kimberle Crenshaw and civil rights lawyer Derrick Bell sought to examine the influence of race on United States law.

According to the American Bar Association, tenets of Critical Race Theory include:

• Race is not a biological truth but rather a social construct.
• Racism is embedded within all facets of society, including the legal system and government.
• Racist events are not random but a manifestation of structural and systemic racism.

Critical Race Theory is not simply diversity and inclusion training, according to the ABA, but "a practice of interrogating the role of race and racism in society."

Christian school approaches

When asked if Saxony Lutheran High School intended to teach Critical Race Theory, principal Mark Ruark referred the Southeast Missourian to an article written by the Rev. Lucas Woodford. Woodford is president of Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod's Minnesota South District.

Woodford wrote that the ideology of Critical Race Theory "smacks up" against biblical teachings, that "fundamental biblical tenets displaced by the dogma of CRT are extensive and alarming."

In an email to the Southeast Missourian, Ruark wrote that as a Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod High School, Saxony's stance on Critical Race Theory is the same as the Synod's.

Ruark added the high school does teach about the evils of segregation and discrimination and how hate and racism are sins.

Notre Dame Regional High School follows a similar Christian-based approach.

Students at Notre Dame learn about racism by studying a document titled "Open Wide Our Hearts: The Enduring Call to Love -- A Pastoral Letter Against Racism."

The document defines racism and discusses how it has affected different groups. It teaches how the "sin of racism" is still with society today -- both consciously and unconsciously -- in ways that different groups feel generational effects from.

The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops developed "Open Wide Our Hearts" in 2018. Notre Dame Regional High School began teaching it last year, according to principal Tim Garner.

Notre Dame teachers have always taught social justice at the senior level but added the document to the school's teachings at all grade levels last year, Garner said.

Each grade level will have class discussion and coursework based on the document.

"From this coursework and discussion, we will work toward our call to recognize racism in all its forms and how we move towards reconciliation as a means of healing these sins of the past and present," Garner said.

State and national measures

On Tuesday, DESE finished a survey of Missouri's 550 K-12 school districts and charter schools. The survey gauged which schools teach or planned to teach Critical Race Theory.

One out of the 425 districts that responded said they use Critical Race Theory in classrooms. Three said they teach the New York Times's "1619 Project," a long-form journalism project with a goal to reframe U.S. history through the lens of slavery and untold stories of African-American success.

None of the district officials who responded yes were from Southeast Missouri school districts.

Kansas City Public Schools reported it uses a curriculum that incorporates Critical Race Theory and the "1619 Project." Two officials from St. Louis school districts said they use the "1619 Project."

On Monday, U.S. Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.), introduced legislation, Love America Act of 2021.

The bill would take away federal funding from schools whose students do not read historical texts such as the U.S. Constitution and Declaration of Independence. Schools would also lose federal funding if they teach in some way that those texts are products of white supremacy or racism.

Hawley's bill was read twice Monday and then referred to the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions.

All local school officials who responded to the Southeast Missourian's requests for comment on Critical Race Theory said education on diversity and inclusion is important to them.

Cape Girardeau Public School District is one of the most racially diverse districts in the area. Tallent said district officials feel the district's diversity is something that should be embraced and celebrated.

"By the nature of our student population, our students are organically learning to work with others no matter their differences," Tallent said. "That being said, we are always looking for ways to better serve our families and students and look to them for guidance on how to foster an inclusive environment."