In a 6-1 vote on June 7, the Mat-Su School Board approved a host of changes to its policies relating to parental rights, teacher activism, sex education and the use of LGBTQ pronouns in public schools.
The changes strengthen parental rights and restrict the ability of educators to push controversial social and sexual ideologies on impressionable students.
Union-backed Ted Swanson was the only school board member to vote against the changes.
One of the updated policies now restricts school employees from using school time or resources to promote “activist” causes. Another explicitly states that schools must get “written permission” from parents before referring to kids with alternative pronouns that conflict with a child’s biological sex.
Another update states that schools must give parents a two-week notification before any class, or program on gender identity, human reproduction, or sexual matter is provided to a child. Plus, schools must obtain written permission from parents before their children participate in such activities.
None of the librarians addressed the central concern, which parents have raised in recent weeks, after discovering that school libraries contained dozens of books pushing controversial sexual themes.
The board also clarified that school counselors are first and foremost “academic” advisors who must consult “primarily with the parents.” It also removed any suggestions that counselors have authority to offer advice to students about gender issues or personal problems without parental involvement.
At its next meeting the school board is set to amend its library policy by requiring parental consent before librarians provide material on human sexuality to children. That proposal removes wording that suggested school librarians had authority to purchase books without prior committee recommendations or school board approval.
In the lead up to the vote, a number of disgruntled teachers and librarians criticized the changes, claiming they disrespected teachers and librarians by limiting the personal advice and reading materials they could offer students.
Kim Evans, a librarian at Swanson Elementary said the changes were unnecessary, and even “dangerous.” She claimed that library books are already reviewed by professionals, and are therefore “safe.”
“Freedom and liberty seem to be eroding quickly in the Mat-Su,” Evans asserted. She added that children will “soon have less opportunity to talk with trusted adults, as counselors will be limited to academic and career counseling.”
“Respect is what we need,” she said of teachers and librarians. “We are getting instead, censorship.”
A defiant Barrie Blackman Green, who works as a librarian at Iditarod Elementary, echoed many of these sentiments, claiming that kids should have a wide diversity of books at their disposal.
With regard to limiting what teachers and educators can say when it comes to personal pronouns and LGBTQ-affirming counseling, a number of teachers were emphatically opposed to any restrictions.
“These kids have a choice. They read what they want to read,” she said. “It’s the library. It is their choice.”
None of the librarians addressed the central concern, which parents and community members have raised in recent weeks, after discovering that school libraries contained dozens of controversial titles that include fiction and nonfiction books containing detailed descriptions of masturbation, anal and oral sex, sex toys, pole dancing scenes, sex parties, dominatrix, foul language, descriptions of graphic and violent rape, gay teen sex encounters, gender transitioning characters and much more.
With regard to limiting what teachers and educators can say when it comes to personal pronouns and LGBTQ-affirming counseling, a number of teachers were emphatically opposed to any restrictions.
Dannielle Chyko, a counselor at Career Tech High School, said she discusses all kinds of things with kids, including their home life and relationships with parents. She claimed education is about giving children “access to the education they want, need and deserve, regardless of how we feel about certain issues.”
In some cases, teachers opposed to the changes cast conservative parents as problematic, especially when parental values conflict with those of gender-confused students.
“I don’t care what a small group says, the Mat-Su is basically conservative,” he added. “The eyes of the whole state of Alaska are on the Mat-Su. We are leading the way in education.”
Left-leaning Board Member Ted Swanson articulated this position in explaining why he voted against the changes.
“I believe students’ rights and parents’ rights end when they interfere with one another,” he said. “You as an American have a right – you have constitutional rights – and they end when they start to interfere with any other American. There is no age limit to that.”
In the weeks leading up to the vote, many hard-left and LGBTQ activist groups, such as the ACLU and others, helped train and mobilize people to speak out against the proposed changes. Alaska’s largest teachers’ union – NEA-Alaska – also issued a statement a few days before vote, urging teachers to sign a pledge demanding that schools make “no exceptions” when it comes to providing resources for LGBTQ students.
Ron Johnson, a longtime conservative political activist with grandchildren attending Mat-Su schools, praised board members for standing strong.
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“I believe that you do truly represent conservative values of the Mat-Su Valley,” he said. “Most of our cities are governed by conservative governance. Our borough is governed by conservative governance, and this school board certainly is. I think this fully reflects the sentiment of the Mat-Su Valley.”
Johnson urged the board to continue on the track they have taken.
“I don’t care what a small group says, the Mat-Su is basically conservative,” he added. “The eyes of the whole state of Alaska are on the Mat-Su. We are leading the way in education.”
On a somewhat related note, School Superintendent Randy Trani highlighted the fact that the district is seeing an enormous spike in families opting to homeschool their children through the district’s Mat-Su Central program. Trani said about 40 new homeschoolers had signed up by this time last year. As of two weeks ago, however, the district has added 170 new homeschool students – a four-fold increase over 2022. With more than 2,300 homeschool students, Mat-Su Central is now more than twice as large as the next biggest school in the Valley.
16 Comments
God Almighty is good! Thank you for reporting on this information Mr. Davidson!
I want to add a “Thank YOU!” to the MSB School Board for voting to protect the children.
There were some sad testimonies that did tug at the heart but it really seemed those that spoke against the policy changes had not really read them or thought through them. The changes are about allowing parents and guardians to be informed about books and curriculum. The changes protect students and families and keep a now questionable system from indoctrinating against family values. The changes also indirectly allows for teachers to focus more on what is important – academics. Not many teachers likely have an intent to purposefully indoctrinate students but it seems the agenda is so prevalent that for many whom might not be well grounded, the temptation is there, and at the expense of actually teaching. I commend the school board and am so thankful that they were steadfast and could see through the misguided emotional drama.
Also I wonder how many of the testimonies may have been from outside the borough. A number of those that testified stated their district but many did not, and more than a few of the stories sounded very similar, if not identical, to what was testified at the ASAA public session in Valdez and the school board meeting in Juneau.
Finally, a school board that is able to stand up to LGBTQ activist groups, such as the ACLU and others, teachers’ unions such as NEA-Alaska. Glad to see that the MS School Board strengthened parental rights and restricted the ability of educators (teachers, counselors, etc) to push controversial social and sexual ideologies on impressionable students. No surprise that UNION-backed Ted Swanson was the only school board member to vote against the changes.
Ted Swanson needs to be told that no one has “constitutional rights”. You have NATURAL rights that the constitution has promised not to interfere with. The right of parents to raise their kids in the way they decide came before there were any such things as a state or federal constitution. Public education from age 6-16 is a construct of the socialist Horace Mann, who borrowed his ideas from militaristic Prussia in the 19th century. Before then, you educated yourself through a process of parental and professional apprenticeship. And people forget that most Americans were farmers until 1920. Our state constitution, under the mentorship of the socialists at the U of Chicago in 1955, made public education a priority. It is time to return it to independently-funded school districts. Poor districts can turn to home schooling. Blackboards educate just as well as computers.
These Teachers and librarians that don’t like who cares leave. You will not poison our youth with your vial hate and spew your garbage.
It seems too many employed as librarians and teachers missed the required college class on human development and learning. There is a reason why driving licenses are not given until age 16, legal drinking age is 21, rhinoplasty is not performed until all facial structure is done developing, to name a few age bounded activities. Shocking sexual information should not be made available to children. The public school system and the library system have grievously betrayed the trust of parents, families, the community and especially children. Yet they demand that they are trustworthy and should be in charge of our kids. Wow. The MSB school board did the right thing.
Yes they did and I am so proud of the families home schooling pod schooling hiring a teacher with a few families or the private school of their choice.
Take a bow board! You deserve our appreciation for taking a significant risk! Our governor ought to but won’t follow your lead!
If only the Anchorage Assembly would grow a spine… way to go Mat-Su =]
The Groomers lost a battle, but the war rages on.
Kids love to imagine all kinds of pretend games. It is actually very important that they do, but these games need to be good and healthy imaginations, that further a child’s development into a secure, well rounded person. Thank you to you all of you, for protecting those kids’ minds. Introducing thoughts of human sexuality too early in a child’s life will MESS THEM UP FOR LIFE. It is like putting some ink in the water, and then trying to get it back out. That is why there were songs like this written, “Oh be careful little eyes, what you see, Oh be careful little ears, what you hear…for the Father up above is looking down in Love….
Groups that try to expose little ones to all kinds of unnatural sexuality, know very well, that they are mudding up the waters of a little human’s mind. That is how they win them over to become like them, so that more and more people accept these unnatural practices and mankind will eventually die out.
We do need to fight for the helpless…
Eva. Please share with us specific examples of “unnatural sexuality.”
The Bible says to take all our imaginations captive to the obedience of Christ. 2 Cor 10:5
With a 6-1 vote, and only one board member, representing the Union voting against all other members who were in favor of parents, the solution seems very clear. Replace the agenda pushing Board Member, the Union leadership, or the individual Union members (teachers) / librarians/influencers who want the masses to suffer to placate the fringe. Thank you MSB/ involved parents.
So Based upon this quote:
“I believe students’ rights and parents’ rights end when they interfere with one another,” he said. “You as an American have a right – you have constitutional rights – and they end when they start to interfere with any other American. There is no age limit to that.”
Ted Swanson must be PRO-LIFE? Since that unborn child’s life is protected by the constitution and “there is no age limit to that”