Intense debate over new school board policy BP 6144 dominated the atmosphere at the Cupertino Union School District School Board meeting on Thursday, Nov. 21 at Meyerholz Elementary School. The policy — which the Board passed 5-0 at the end of the meeting — sets guidelines for teachers on teaching controversial issues, including presenting balanced information unbiasedly without mentioning their personal opinions to emphasize students’ critical thinking. The California School Boards Association formulated BP 6144 which has already been adopted by FUHSD and other local school districts.
Over 60 community members gave public comments at the meeting — a significant turnout compared to typical board meetings — and most pertained to disagreements over BP 6144. While all seemed to agree that elementary schools must emphasize critical thinking and comprehensive instruction, the issue of what qualifies as controversial and therefore something that the bill would regulate was a core concern.
Supporters of the board policy included parents concerned about the age-appropriateness of classroom discussions or about teachers advocating on LGBTQ+-related topics, Jewish community members speaking about bullying resulting from teachers’ anti-Israel rhetoric, and a Moms for Liberty representative who believed teachers should focus on the improvement of student math scores. Meanwhile, opposition to the board policy included a range of parents, teachers, a California Teachers Association representative and LGBTQ+ community members. Many, in reference to the FAIR Act of 2011, demanded that protections for LGBTQ+ students and staff be added to the board policy, particularly since a nonbinary transitional Kindergarten teacher at Dilworth Elementary School was recently placed on administrative leave after CUSD received complaints that students were being taught age-inappropriate material. A parent withdrew their 4-year-old child from the school due to a gender-inclusive poster in the teacher’s classroom. The Cupertino Education Association, the teacher’s union for CUSD, also hosted a rally in support of the teacher and LGBTQ+ teacher rights prior to the Board meeting.
Cupertino High School teacher and Fremont Education Association president Carley Stavis offered her perspective on the policy, stating that the Board should include clearer language defining what controversial issues are to ensure it is not misused against teachers on issues that are not considered controversial by the district, a complication she says she has seen in FUHSD since it adopted BP 6144. Stavis is currently pushing the FUHSD School Board to review the policy, citing the need to add language that differentiates between “protected identities and actual controversial issues.” She appreciates that the CUSD School Board heard a variety of community perspectives and that Board Trustee Sylvia Leong appended her vote for the BP 6144 with a commitment to ensure express protections for the district LGBTQ+ community. Though she is comforted by this commitment, she emphasizes that follow-through on it will be essential.
“There’s a lot that can still be done to be really clear and educate the public through those policies about what is and isn’t a controversial issue,” Stavis said. “It’s really great that they’re talking about making sure that educators are involved because they are the ones that have to think about how this policy applies to the way they teach and to how they interact with students.”
