Conservatives could gain control of state school boards in Kansas and Nebraska

By JOHN HANNA, AP Political Writer

TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) – Conservatives could win a majority on state school boards in Kansas and Nebraska in this year’s elections, making it easier for them to shape what is taught in classrooms.

At issue are well-known attempts by conservative Republicans and groups to limit what public K-12 schools can teach about racism, diversity, sexuality and gender. But also up for debate are skill-building lessons that conservatives dismiss as social engineering.

A push to teach soft skills – such as perseverance, tolerance of others and managing emotions – came after surveys in recent years showed that companies see them as crucial for future employees. But some parents, state lawmakers and groups see what is sometimes called out social and emotional learningor SEL, as promoting liberal values.

“We want to move away from social engineering and back toward education,” said Fred Postlewait, a retired computer systems manager and a Republican candidate for a seat on the Kansas City Council in the Kansas region.

Conservative parents, right-wing groups and Republican officials in the US who have sought to ban some books and other materials are increasingly including SEL among the “woke” concepts or programs they want to remove from the classroom. SEL has joined DEI — for diversity, equality and inclusivity initiatives — and CRT for critical race theory, which centers on the idea that racism is systemic in American institutions.

Both states lean Republican, which pushed conservative candidates down the ballot in the Nov. 5 election. In Nebraska, state board races are officially nonpartisan, but in Kansas they are partisan and party affiliation can be decisive.

“I’m afraid people don’t have this on their radar,” said Judith Deedy, executive director of the pro-public education organization Game On for Kansas Schools. “If the board turns around, there will be a lot of unhappy people.”

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Fred Postlewait, a Republican candidate for the Kansas State Board of Education from Kansas City, Kansas, shows off two of the yard signs available to supporters at the local Republican Party headquarters in Johnson County, Tuesday, Oct. 1, 2024, in Overland Park , Kan. (AP Photo/John Hanna)

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The Kansas State Board of Education is perhaps best known for its debates two decades ago over whether evolution should be taught in schools. The state had five sets of scientific standards for the primary schools between 1999 and 2007, when the majority of the board changed ownership repeatedly.

Conservatives last won control in 2004, rewriting standards on teaching evolution in schools to reflect doubts about established scientific theory — and to leave room for arguments that the universe’s complexity points to intelligent design. In 2006, the moderate bloc regained control and quickly returned to norms based on science. The latest standards were adopted last year.

“Those types of topics could come back,” said Kansas State Assembly Chair Melanie Haas, a Democrat who is running against Postlewait for a second term. “I don’t know if the administration would have tremendous success passing this as policy, but I think it could be really disruptive to education in Kansas.”

Besides Kansas and Nebraska, only Alabama, Colorado, Michigan, Texas and Utah elect all their board members, but it seems unlikely that the current majorities of these states will lose power. According to the State Education Commission, governors in most states appoint most or all members of the state school board.

The Nebraska State Board of Education is split 4-3 against far-right Republicans, with one vacancy. Half of the seats are on the ballot, including the vacant ones, and in the other three districts the board majority members, all of whom are longtime educators, are no longer running. Members serve a four-year term.

If Conservatives flip two seats for a 5-3 majority, they can advance GOP-led policies such as banning certain books and materials from schools, and ending social and emotional learning programs.

Board member Kirk Penner, a conservative Republican who has condemned “woke culture,” described social and emotional learning in a message on social media last year as “the TROJAN HORSE for all gender and CRT lessons brought to schools.”

“After the 24 elections we should have the majority to have it removed,” he predicted.

Kansas board members also serve four-year terms, with five of the board’s 10 seats up for election this year. A coalition of Democrats and moderate Republicans has six, but three of those members are not up for re-election.

The push to focus more on social and emotional learning in Kansas began in 2015, and state Education Commissioner Randy Watson said SEL addresses what business and community leaders want from public schools. In previous studiesWatson said they have told the state board that students are doing “pretty well” academically, but they need to develop soft skills.

One controversy surrounds questionnaires for parents enrolling their children in preschool or preschool programs. One for parents of 5-year-olds asks 39 questions, including whether their children can go to the bathroom alone, like playing with other children, having long tantrums, and, “Does your child seem happy?”

The goal, officials told the board at its monthly meeting in October, is to help teachers meet the needs of individual children and better manage their classrooms.

But Republican board member Danny Zeck, a retired car dealer from northeastern Kansas who was elected to the state board in 2022, said he worries that schools are telling parents how to treat their children and “want all children to be at everything.” respond in the same way. ”

“That’s not what our great country is based on — it’s based on the fact that you and I are different,” Zeck, who also served on his local school board, said during a break during the October meeting. “I’m concerned about indoctrinating children.”

While challenging Haas for her seat, Postlewait argues that social engineering initiatives take up too much classroom time. As evidence, he points to the scores of Kansas students on annual standardized reading and math tests administered by the state.

The state Department of Education reported earlier this month that two-thirds of Kansas students taking the state tests this spring have the basic knowledge and skills to be ready for life after high school. It reported slight improvements in the percentages of students scoring at the ‘effective’ or ‘excellent’ level.

But almost a third of students showed only ‘limited’ knowledge and skills. That seems far too high to Postlewait and other conservatives, especially if the numbers in individual districts and schools are worse.

“To me, it’s important that the State Board of Education make sure we have rigor in the classroom,” said Senate Education Committee Chairwoman Molly Baumgardner, another Republican from Kansas City.

Baumgardner said that while the Legislature is addressing education issues, it cannot act as quickly as the school board, so she sees lawmakers taking action as “the last resort.”

“The needs of the workforce in our state are: People need to be able to read. They should also have strong math skills,” she added.

Haas, the current board chair, said social and emotional learning programs ensure students are prepared both academically and socially so they can thrive in their post-graduate jobs.

Given the election, she said, “It potentially compromises the way we approach social-emotional learning.”

Associated Press writer Margery A. Beck contributed to this report from Omaha, Nebraska.

Originally published: October 25, 2024 at 11:12 am