Parent's rights group calls out schools for equity studies, requests civil rights investigations
Categories: US Education News
A parent’s rights organization has filed five complaints with the Department of Education's Office of Civil Rights for discrimination based on race, sex, color or national origin, after school districts commissioned equity studies, costing taxpayers thousands, which identified racial disparities within their schools.The Manhattan Beach Unified School District, Berea City School District, Jackson Public School District, Hudson School District and Avonworth School District all commissioned equity audits or evaluations which found disparities between ethnic groups in discipline or enrollment in specific programs. Parents Defending Education (PDE) President and Founder Nicole Neily told Fox New Digital her organization filed the complaints because "If a district commissions such a study because they believe there is a problem, and the study comes back and says ‘yes, there is a problem,’ then that is something the Department of Education should investigate, there are real grounds for concern here." "Otherwise, is this just some kind of empty virtue signaling?" she added. "We’re kind of calling them out on that behavior. What is going on in your school district, and why are you spending finite taxpayer dollars on these investigations."The equity audit conducted in the Manhattan Beach Unified School District in California found the district has a culture "in which marginalized or minority groups have been implicitly excluded from opportunities to engage in the institutional practices." The audit conducted in the Jackson Public School District in Jackson, Michigan said "minoritized students expressed that they are not treated equally within the school system, and at times students are labeled into categories they are unable to discard."The Biden administration has also said it "commits to deepening the conversation with communities, advocates, and all stakeholders on how we can partner with communities to deliver equitable outcomes."Neily said she believes PDE’s complaints will be dismissed "as soon as possible," which she believes will prove the department does not take disparate impact analysis seriously.The Hudson School District told Fox News Digital it had not received the complaint. The other four school districts did not reply to Fox News' request for comment.