Editor’s note: This is the first of a multi-part series on the impact of your vote for School Board Candidates, an OAA Voter Education Project

Ask any voter or parent and you’ll find they are confident that they elect school boards to represent them, they are allowed to give input, and influence decisions on what is taught in public schools. In odd number years, the third Tuesday in May, May 16, 2023, voters mark their ballots to elect roughly half of Oregon’s school boards.

Months prior, organizations and groups search for candidates that are willing to fulfill the responsibilities and commitments expected of school board members, including policies, rules and curriculum, teacher standards, and collective bargaining.

Parents have basis for assuming their school board will function as parents wish and in the best interest of their children. ORS 332.072 tells them “the legal status of school districts as corporate bodies, and the district school board is authorized to transact all business coming within the jurisdiction of the district and to sue and be sued. Pursuant to law, district school boards have control of the district schools and are responsible for educating children residing in the district.”

Oregon Abigail Adams Voter Project is once again sponsoring candidate surveys that touch on the nitty-gritty of what school boards face. Mostly based on current and past legislation, it exposes the trending in the legislature on issues that have become contentious in school board meetings. One such bill was SB 1521 passed in 2022, which prohibits a school board from dismissing a superintendent for following any federal, state or local requirement even if it is at the option and against the school board policy.

As is noted in ORS 332.072, parents can sue school board members for violation of laws. Such laws as:

• ORS 329.025 requires listing characteristics of the school system that emphasizes involvement of parents and the community in the total education of students.
• ORS 329.125 school districts are to provide opportunities for parents or guardians to be involved in establishing and implementing educational goals and to participate in decision-making at the school site.
• ORS 336.082 assures development of a nondiscriminatory curriculum.
• ORS 336.067 gives special emphasis on respect for all humans, regardless of race, color, creed, national origin, religion, age, sex or disability.
• ORS 336.465 the right of parents, guardians and residents to examine instructional material to be used in any class, course, assembly or school-sponsored activity.

One thing the “pandemic” has told parents is how much in the dark they have been. Are there really “public” schools when they are not open to the public and are not accountable to the public? Schools are run by government, they are regulated by government, they are funded by government, they are compelled by government, they are government schools. Perhaps what is missing was best stated in the Journal of Counseling and Development. “Research indicates that when a collective group of school, family, and community stakeholders work together, achievement gaps decrease.” (p. 408, Bryan & Henry, 2012)

As the 2023 legislature progresses, attention is drawn away from school board elections. As legislators discuss bills such as SB 292, school board members are reminded of the requirement to file a statement of economic interest by April 15, 2023. SB 292 proposes to give board members in districts less than 1,650 students extended time to file. If passed, HB 2002 will be the most serious issues facing school boards affecting parents relationship with their student, and parents will be looking to school boards for support.

Parents cannot ignore that their rights are in peril. In this series we will highlight issues that school boards face and what voters need to know to reform school policies.

A D V E R T I S E M E N T

A D V E R T I S E M E N T

In 2016, Oregon adopted new health education standards. Beginning in kindergarten, students are taught about media influence on health and ways to prevent diseases. This was three years before COVID-19 was detected in the U.S.

Students are also taught the many ways to express gender - and how to communicate with preferred pronouns with people of all sexual orientations.

At meetings and public hearings early on, as the curriculum was being developed, there was very little concern from parents. Perhaps the biggest blessing coming out of the pandemic is that parents learned what their children are being taught and how overly sexual the curriculum is that is being implemented. It opened their eyes to the whole realm of education and how much it had changed in a short time.

School board elections are crucial for education reform. Oregon Abigail Adams Voter Education Project lists the candidates and those responding to the survey on their website.


--Donna Bleiler

Post Date: 2023-04-19 18:30:11

Last Update: 2023-04-20 15:29:23