MONTGOMERY CO. – Several community members came forward to provide comments to the board during the public address session of the May 6 meeting.
Topics of the Code of Student Conduct Policy, curriculum, and especially the provision of white privilege conference (WPC) attendance by MCPS employees with potential follow-up instruction to students in the county, were high on the list of concerns.
Judy Brewalski of Blacksburg first addressed the board about the Code of Student Conduct Policy, specifically focusing on four areas. One of these areas of the conduct policy concerns the consideration of expulsion or out-of-school suspension.
“Anytime a student is removed from instruction, they are denied the opportunity to learn, which increases the chances for disparity,” Brewalski said. “Adding in-school suspension to the monitoring process will provide a more comprehensive evaluation of the disparities and outcomes of opportunities.”
The topic of Montgomery County Public School (MCPS) staff attending White Privilege Conferences, funded by school funds, has brought forth varying opinions from the community. The WPC and The Privilege Institute (TPI) both began in 1999, from now Dr. Eddie Moore, Jr. and other members of a leadership group who explored ideas of white supremacy, and other forms of oppression (www.theprivilegeinstitute.com).
Angela Akers of Christiansburg, reading in part from the www.theprivilegeinstitute.com website, said, “We empower and equip individuals to work for equity and justice through self and social transformations. White privilege is the other side of racism. Unless we name it, we are in danger of wallowing in guilt or moral outrage with no idea of how to move beyond them.” Akers then said to the Board, “Is this where our tax dollars are going? This is what needs to be cut by the budget, instead of free lunch and school safety for our children.
Bob Beard of Christiansburg also spoke against the funding of White Privilege Conference attendance for MCPS staff and instruction to students on the topic. “While 43% of our kids math, 30% fail in reading, MCPS spends thousands and thousands on the white privilege conference instead of on tutors who could boost scores,” Beard said.
Speaking as a citizen of Christiansburg, Kim Bowman commented on the emotional impact that WPC’s have on students. Also citing the www.privilegeinstitute.com’s website, Bowman said, “It describes a youth action project that teaches children as young as 11 years old to fight white privilege. In 2014, an eight-year-old at WPC was taught to say, ‘white people get jobs easier because of their skin, not their skills.’ This is not education, it is indoctrination.”
“I am furious MCPS wasted $12,500 on the white privilege conference while hiding the details,” Joyce Radford of Christiansburg said. “They teach white supremacy narratives, not academics. Yet, MCPS sends four staff members spending $500,000 on DEI overall.”
Citing Federal Executive Order 14151, Kimberly Williamson from Christiansburg said, “[It] bans harmful and wasteful DEI practices, and MCPS risks $5 million in funds by clinging to WPC.”
Anna Vajane, living in District A, said. “Since white privilege actually does exist in our society and in our institutions, I do support staff learning about it and about the ways it can better support our minority students.”
Chris Thomas of Christiansburg expressed views as well to the School Board in support of staff attending the WPC. “Are we seriously going to argue that America is not rooted in white supremacy and oppression? I understand that my friends on the Right haven’t cracked a book since the Nixon administration, but even a cursory survey of American history reveals that slavery, segregation, and racism has defined the long arc of the American story since 1619 to the present,” Thomas said.
