Disclaimer: I’m the person who ran against Teuscher in last year’s election. A question was posted in the r/Utah sub Reddit: Who profits from Teuscher’s HB267? that I’d like to respond to. This post was too long to submit so I’m publishing it here and providing the link in the thread.
Jordan is an idealist, and his beliefs are his virtue.
Jordan is bent on weakening organized labor, breaking the public school system, and taking voter rights away from Utah voters. He is an acolyte of the conservative right ALEC (American Legislative Exchange Council) and under the wing of Utah Senate President Stuart Adams, who is a past National Chairman of ALEC.
Teuscher is the primary officer of the Conservative Millennials PAC, whose members include Rep. Candice Pierucci (sponsor of voucher programs to de-fund public schools); Kera Birkeland (sponsor of anti-trans legislation); and Anthony Loubet (relatively quiet on bills but votes in favor of legislation from the group). This group is responsible for some serious shit legislation in Utah.
Teuscher is doubling down in a multi-year effort to purge unions for public employees, with the intent of weakening labor overall in Utah. He wants to see public education de-funded. He is the sponsor of copy/paste legislation that was introduced in other conservative states to move on a national agenda. He is supported by his PAC, by Schultz (House Speaker), by Adams (Senate President), and the Utah GOP.
It’s worth mentioning Teuscher’s pettiness. The UEA advocated strongly against constitutional amendments that were on the ballot last year, and particularly for an amendment that would have discarded protections for public school funding, which would force education spending to compete in the general fund. HB267 is Teuscher’s retribution.
Incoming Funds
Aside from contributions, Teuscher’s campaign funding was coming from in-kind services provided by (primarily) the Utah Republican Party (disclosures here), and the conservative Utah Taxpayers Association (disclosures here), which covered multiple thousands of spend on signs and mailers. All of Teuscher’s reported campaign finances are on the disclosure site here, and for the Conservative Millennials PAC here.
I would also raise a concern that Jordan is a strong proponent of blockchain and crypto, and would like more transparency on his investments and funds received using cryptocurrency or collected transaction fees.
Recently, I was surprised by a tone-deaf endorsement of Teuscher from Jim Moss @epsomjrm, Chair of the Utah Board of Education @utboardofed. Jordan is no friend to teachers or to public schools. Why Jim endorsed a legislator who attacks public employee interests, defunds public schools, and hasn’t bothered to be present at any of the public schools in his district during his entire tenure in the House is the poorest and most partisan thing he could do as a board member of USBE.
“Jordan’s dedication to supporting students and teachers, and encouraging parent engagement has made a significant impact.” – Jim Moss, who clearly doesn’t know what he’s talking about
Teuscher is no friend to teachers
Jordan has repeatedly attacked public employee associations, including teachers associations like the Utah Education Association (UEA). During general session this year, Teuscher wrote HB285 to make it more difficult for public employees to organize and collectively bargain for safe working conditions, decent wages and benefits, and legal protections. In 2023, he wrote HB241, an anti-union bill designed to starve public unions of money and kill their ability to operate at all in the organizations they serve. Both bills failed to pass due to overwhelming opposition.
It’s worth noting that I have endorsements from the Utah Education Association (UEA), Jordan Education Association, Utah Parents for Teachers, and the American Federation of Teachers (AFT).
Teuscher wants to defund (not defend) public education
This is what Jordan Teuscher said when talking about the 2023 HB215 Utah Fits All Scholarship voucher program:
“as these students come out of public schools, a lot of time, and I’ve heard this from teachers, a lot of times they’ll have to spend, you know, 80% of their time on 20% of the students because it’s just not the right fit. You know, maybe they have a disability or, you know, a learning challenge or something, they don’t learn the same way. And so if we can get those students into schools that focus on that need, and then the teachers can spend all their time dealing with the other 80% of the teachers [sic] it’s a total win-win for everyone. And that’s what I intend, that’s what I hope to see as it moves forward.“ – Jordan Teuscher
Teuscher writes poor legislation that gets tied up in courts
Teuscher wrote HB464 to allow parents to sue social media companies, and SB194 (i.e. the Utah Minor Protection in Social Media Act) that successfully passed but was immediately challenged in courts and subsequently blocked for violating first amendment rights. In the court’s response they stated “The court recognizes the State’s earnest desire to protect young people from the novel challenges associated with social media use,” … “But owing to the First Amendment’s paramount place in our democratic system, even well-intentioned legislation that regulates speech based on content must satisfy a tremendously high level of constitutional scrutiny.”
Although it’s good to protect our children from online harms, we need competent authors for legislation who aren’t simply showboating for votes, then leaving us with costly court fees.
Teuscher wants guns and religion to replace diversity and free expression in schools
Teuscher voted for the anti-trans bathroom bill (HB257)
Teuscher voted for indoctrination in public schools (HB269 and HB514)
The bottom line: Teuscher doesn’t care about public employees, including teachers. He doesn’t care about our system of public education and is willing to undermine its funding and supports. How a USBE Board member could endorse him as a candidate is antithetical to the interests of public education, and disrespectful of the community of educators who represent and defend public education in Utah.
The summer is heating up, and Utah gets ready to implement a new statewide book-banning system. The Salt Lake Tribune reports that effective July 1 — ironically three days before the nation celebrates its freedom — a new law originally sponsored by Rep. Ken Ivory and Sen. Todd Weiler takes effect where books will begin to be removed based on “objective sensitive material” as defined by Utah code. There were literal discussions by the Utah State Board of Education (USBE) whether to conduct book burnings.
The bill is HB29: Sensitive Material Review Amendments, and it specifically calls out Utah Criminal Code Title 76, Chapter 10 Part 12 to define what objective sensitive material may be. The code uses terms like “contemporary community standards,” “prevailing standards in the adult community,” and “serious value”. The code is hyper-focused on expressions of sexuality and nudity.
It doesn’t mention physical violence, gore, or abuse. It doesn’t mention persecution, genocide, mass murders. It doesn’t mention drug abuse or recreational drug use. Apparently those depictions don’t constitute objective sensitive material according to the prevailing standards in (our) adult community. Here in Utah, sex is bad, bad stuff.
The law does not take into account that sexuality is identity. It doesn’t take into account, or possibly disregards that for minors a book may be the closest experience to reading about and understanding who they are. It does not factor that its “contemporary community standards” upheld are the religious dogmas of a church, and not broadly representative of religious views, culture and identity in our community. It’s unusual that the titles are works by renowned authors like Toni Morrison, Judy Blume and Margaret Atwood. These authors are now mobilizing as Authors against Book Bans – follow them on Instagram.
Our public school systems already have a system in place to monitor what’s appropriate to place on a library shelf. We have librarians who are trained, professional staff with degrees, accreditations, professional associations and administrative support to determine what students are reading, and what’s appropriate (or not) to place on a library shelf.
Stay tuned for the Utah State Board of Education to post its list of banned books on their site after the law goes into effect. July 15 Update: Links to each LEA are now published by the USBE.
In the meantime, if you want to do something for your community consider fighting censorship and starting a Little Library of Banned Books. If there is interest, I’d be happy to sponsor a workshop to build little libraries for our House District.
Are you interested? Let me know. I look forward to hearing from you.
Our district is a primarily residential district that encompasses the north and west of South Jordan city, and the southwestern edge of West Jordan city. We are home to eight public schools that all fall within the Jordan School District. Our schools service elementary and middle school students. Our oldest school is 45 years old.
The reason that I’m stating all of this is because I want to raise the issue and address the topic of school vouchers that undermine strong public education and student opportunity. They take scarce funding from these public schools, and move that money to private schools that are not accountable to taxpayers, for test scores, or teacher certifications. The NEA provides a dismal review of the voucher program in Arizona – the Empowerment Scholarship Account (ESA) due to its cost and utter lack of accountability. The Utah Fits All Scholarship program is modeled after the Arizona voucher program, and promises the same fate in our state. Critics of the voucher program object that the voucher program will financially hobble Utah’s public schools, which are already among the least funded in the country.
Families overwhelmingly support public schools. Our public schools are a gold standard for education. They offer programs in arts, STEM, athletics, and robust extra-curricular clubs and activities. Public schools are the only spaces where there are protections for students with disabilities, with a notable exception of specialized schools. Teachers are certified and maintain ongoing education. Our public schools have robust systems of support that include the PTA, Community Councils and volunteers. Our funds should be used to improve public school programs, including school lunch, extended day programs, after school programs, invest in teacher salaries, and to add support positions (paras, nurses, counselors) to administrative staff.
Group sues over Utah Fits All scholarship program (ksltv.com) “The Utah Education Association, a group of parents and an elected member of the Utah State Board of Education are suing over the Utah Fits All scholarship program.”
Vouchers (nea.org) – “there is ZERO statistical significance that voucher programs improve overall student success” – “Furthermore, vouchers have been shown to not support students with disabilities, they fail to protect the human and civil rights of students, and they exacerbate segregation.”
Utah Fits All vouchers all awarded. Here’s how families can spend $8k for next school year. (sltrib.com) – “As to how those families intend to use the money (private school, homeschooling, extracurriculars, etc.), ACE said that’s currently unknown. However, families can begin accessing their spending accounts starting in early August – and the possibilities are almost nearly endless.”
State Policymakers Should Reject K-12 School Voucher Plans (cbpp.org) – “vouchers divert money away from public schools, sometimes by directly re-routing education funding to private schools, and other times indirectly by making it harder to pay teachers, buy new textbooks, and provide quality after-school programming.”
The Highly Negative Impacts of Vouchers (americanprogerss.org) – “analysis builds on a large body of voucher program evaluations in Louisiana, Indiana, Ohio, and Washington, D.C., all of which show that students attending participating private schools perform significantly worse than their peers in public schools—especially in math.”
Trust in our system of public education. Your representative needs to represent you. You are the voter. You are the constituent. If your voice isn’t represented in the district, then speak up, get involved, and act with your vote in November. I ask that you stand for our system of public education, and stand with me for better representation.
Public education is one of the most valuable assets of our community, and our teachers deserve recognition and support for their work. Social Emotional Learning (SEL) programs at school are integral to teaching empathy and connection. Curriculums should provide age-appropriate instruction that is not filtered by religion or revisionist thinking. Our children need to develop broader understandings of the world, and develop critical thinking and social skills to be successful.
I stand with teachers for pay raises and for collective bargaining. It’s frustrating to see that passing teacher pay raises is only negotiated in order to pass negative legislation (i.e. school vouchers), or for publicity moves by the super-majority in Utah’s legislature (i.e. the 2024 election year proposal to do away with the income tax that is a primary funding source for education, but “hey, let’s throw a bone and give teachers raises”). We need a priority bill for teacher funding. We need to fight against the initiative to cancel the so-called “CRT praxis” of the conservative right.
I am against private school vouchers that take money from the public school system. Public money should stay in public schools, and vouchers are literally defunding our system of public education.
Regarding children with disabilities in public schools – I have personal connection to this issue. I have a daughter with cerebral palsy and IDD who went through the Jordan District public education system. I was part of the “We All Belong” campaign in 2021 when Jordan School District attempted to consolidate SPED classes and bus students away from their home schools (we won due to public appeal). Removing students with disabilities from our public schools destroys bonds for these students, both abled and disabled. These relationships are critical for students, who form lifelong bonds and shape perspectives on individuality, purpose, and understanding. Representative Teuscher and Representative Pierucci have stated at Town Halls that “difficult students” need to be removed from public schools. This goes directly against federal IDEA and FAPE; it impacts federal funding and the programs that public schools are eligible for. Their opinions are not qualified or supported by the majority of educators and school administrators.
This is what Jordan Teuscher said when talking about the 2023 HB215 Utah Fits All Scholarship voucher program:
“as these students come out of public schools, a lot of time, and I’ve heard this from teachers, a lot of times they’ll have to spend, you know, 80% of their time on 20% of the students because it’s just not the right fit. You know, maybe they have a disability or, you know, a learning challenge or something, they don’t learn the same way. And so if we can get those students into schools that focus on that need, and then the teachers can spend all their time dealing with the other 80% of the teachers [sic] it’s a total win-win for everyone. And that’s what I intend, that’s what I hope to see as it moves forward.“
Jordan Teuscher
I am currently endorsed by Utah Parents for Teachers, and the American Federation of Teachers (AFT). I am seeking critical endorsement from UEA as well. If you are interested in my survey responses from UEA and UPfT see the following links:
I’m proud to share that Utah Parents For Teachers has endorsed my campaign! Investing in public education, and actively supporting our educators and students are in the best interest of our community.
For transparency, I am providing my answers to a survey from Utah Parents for Teachers so that my positions on these questions can be shared with constituents.
Q1: Your name and the office you are running for:
Greg Green, HD44 House Representative
Q2: If you are currently serving in office, how are CURRENT teachers a consistent part of conversations regarding education policy? If you are not currently in office, how do you plan on making sure teachers are part of your learning when it comes to educational policy in the future?
I’m not currently in office. The first step is for democratic candidates to successfully campaign up and down the ticket to replace USBE board members to restore reasonable oversite for Utah schools.
Q3: If you are currently serving in office, how did you vote on HB215 (vouchers) and why did you vote that way? For everyone, what is your position on increasing the number or amount of vouchers?
I’m not currently in office. I would have voted no for vouchers, and I will categorically state that vouchers work against a free public education system. The particular issue I had with HB215 was the “compromise” of offering salary for educators as a gimmick to gain support. We need to fund our educators, and I will work to promote that, but I don’t believe the compromise in this bill was beneficial. See HB215 https://le.utah.gov/~2023/bills/static/HB0215.html
Q4: What is your position on the current book banning that is happening in all school districts in Utah? What is your position on the bill by Rep. Ivory is proposing that will lower the threshold to ban books statewide to 2 school districts or 5 charter schools causing a small minority to control what is banned statewide?
I am 100% against book banning. Period. You can see my comments about this on my campaign site at https://utah44.com/issues/. You can also see my post at https://utah44.com/a-utah-reading-list/ about response to Utah Parents United. It’s worth mentioning that I have my own Little Free Library charter specifically to make banned books available in the community. Regarding Ken Ivory’s bill HB29 https://le.utah.gov/~2024/bills/static/HB0029.html, he attempts to define “sensitive material” as constituting “objective sensitive material or subjective sensitive material”, he expands the definition beyond library materials, and unnecessarily apportions review to school boards. Contrast that with the quote “A truly great library contains something in it to offend everyone.” from librarian Jo Godwin. We don’t need to be banning books, we need to create more classes in critical thinking and encouraging debate. We need to be funding educators and librarians. We need to offer safe spaces for students to grow into adults with the capacity to think for themselves and make educated, reason-based decisions.
Q5: How do you define CRT and do you believe it is currently being taught in Utah public schools? Do you also support AP African American Studies courses being developed in high schools? If so, why? If not, why not?
CRT is Critical Race Theory, which argues that historical patterns of racism are ingrained in law and other modern institutions. It is generally understood that CRT is not taught in K-12 settings, rather is part of higher education programs. “CRT” has been used recently for a word-soup of acronyms, with the intent to get the public thinking that all are the same, and that all are bad. This is broadly an attack against diversity and equity in our public schools. I’m fighting against the USBE attempt to repeal of Educational Equity Rule – R277-328 (we won by only 1 vote this week, see my letter at https://utah44.com/letter-vote-against-repeal-of-educational-equity-rule-r277-328/), and also against the UT GOP RESOLUTION IN SUPPORT OF REPEALING R277-328 AND ALL CRT PRAXIS IN UTAH SCHOOLS (https://utgop.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/Oct-28-2023-Resolution-in-Support-of-Repealing-R277-328-and-All-CRT-PRAXIS-in-Utah-Schools.docx.pdf).
Q6: How often do you meet with local school board members? How often do you meet with teachers/administrators/classified personnel? How many town halls/public meetings have you had since last legislative session? (If not currently in office, what are your plans for this?)
I have 3 adult kids who graduated from the Utah public education system (last in 2019). I have not recently attended local school board meetings but was an active participant in the response to Jordan District’s 2021 attempt to force consolidation of local special education classrooms (see https://utah44.com/letter-all-students-belong-in-all-utah-schools/). Regarding plans to engage constituents if elected, my thoughts have been to host moderated “listening parties” to hear from the public on matters important to them, and supplement that with quarterly local town halls within the House District for accessibility. I’m still figuring out what this will look like, but this is the general idea.
Q7: What ideas have you formulated that will increase public school funding to keep up with growth, fully compensate teachers for their expertise and commitment to teaching, ensure they have the classroom resources they need to be effective educators, and making teacher retention a priority?
In 2024 I think the first issue is to look at proposals to do away with income tax, which would disproportionally shift the burden of taxes to property and sales taxes. Utah’s Constitution requires income tax revenues to only be used for public and higher education and some social services for disabled residents, so the question is how and where funding would continue to be sourced for education. I would support higher earmarking for education funding. Regarding classroom resources and teacher retention, I think this needs to be addressed in legislation AND in campaigns to defend our public education system and challenge the rhetoric of conservatives that disrupt and dismantle education standards, funding, and outcomes of our public school system.
Q8: What are your short and long term plans to address school age population declines, shifts and increases (due to limited housing options for young families, less children being born per family, etc.)? With Utah spending the LAST per pupil in the nation, how can funds be allocated to increase spending per pupil and make it more equitable for rural school districts as well?
I already spoke about the serious funding issue for schools in the question above. Demographically Utah has some of the youngest counties in the nation (https://www.axios.com/local/salt-lake-city/2023/06/26/utah-young-us-median-age-county-cache), so it’s not appropriate by any means that we spend so little. I need to learn more in this topic, but initially some things that I believe would help include Medicaid expansion in the state to provide better health and support services, tackling the rhetoric in the legislature and working with the Governer’s office to grow funding, working with education councils and associations, and more. On a side note, it would be interesting if the proposed 2024 bill from Rep. Kera Birkeland on a constitutional amendment to legalize lotteries in Utah could become a source of funding for education in Utah. I am really interested in seeing this legislation introduced (it has not yet been submitted effective Jan 13, 2024).
Q9: If budget was not a concern, what 3 things would you tackle in education? What steps are you taking now to address those issues?
More than 3, sorry.
Change the USBE Board of Director positions to non-partisan/apolitical positions
Provide explicit direction for recall of USBE board positions when persons are materially working against interests of a free public education
Fund our educators, provide funding for professional development, provide funding for paras, provide funding for libraries, offer qualified reimbursement to teachers for supply purchases for classroom materials.
Provide visible support and expansion of Unified Schools programs that include mainstreaming, clubs, leadership development, and athletics
Broadly implement Social Emotional Learning (SEL) policies in K-12 public education
Restore a science-based nonjudgemental sex education program that is not based on abstinence-only
Expand post-secondary University certificate programs for students with IDD (i.e. Aggies Elevated, Wolverines Elevated, etc)
Q10: What ways can we support diversity in our curriculum so that all students see themselves as culturally relevant?
Stop banning books
Remove policies that set cultural standards on hair and clothing
Report discrimination and abuse, and ensure escalations to investigative or prosecutorial agencies takes place. Hold administration accountable.
Encourage roles for diversity for Student Body Officers (i.e. chief diversity officer)
Stop the re-writing of history for our students.
Offer civics and history classes on african-american studies, Latinx, Disability legislation, and the Pride movement
Q11: What have you personally done to support teachers/public education?
Letters written, and attendance at school board, district, or state USBE meetings setting policy or addressing critical issues
Participation in groups like “We All Belong Utah – All Abilities, All Schools”
In-school volunteering, past mentor/counselor for the South Jordan Youth Council
Sponsored and participated in school supply drives at work, participated in school supply drives in the community
Participation during Junior Achievement Career Days by speaking to, or bringing my daughter (Special Olympics Global Ambassador) to speak to Special Education classes on personal story and transition for students with disabilities. Special Education is typically not engaged in Junior Achievement Career Day programs
Supporting my daughter Natalie as a Special Olympics Utah Global Ambassador and Special Olympics US Youth Ambassador for Unified Champion Schools.
Recognition for teachers during teacher’s week in the school year
We funded two special education scholarships through Jordan Education Foundation in memory of Cindy Chavez, a para-educator for our daughter who passed away.
Invitations and outreach to teachers/classes/teams to attend Best Buddies Friendship Walks, Special Olympics events
Sponsoring “Spread the Word: Inclusion” campaigns at Jordan District Schools
Q12: How will you show your commitment to public education outside of your role as an elected official?
By continuing to do what I do. I will maintain engagement with school programs, and if elected will actively sponsor and/or support legislation that defends free public education in Utah.
Before I start, I will remind the Board that you have each been elected to improve student outcomes. Every child needs an opportunity to excel, to contribute to our society positively, and to grow Utah’s increasingly diverse and competitive economy. As parents, teachers and leaders, we are concerned about school board members who care about student well-being and are invested in their success.
DEI is a protection for everyone. Educational Equity is fundamentally about lifting up every single child so that they have an equal opportunity to succeed. Educational Equity is an enabler for success. All kids benefit from schools that know how to serve each and every child.
That said, it’s not time for stupid political stunts. The attempt to repeal the Education Equity Rule (R277-328) is exactly that. If you say that the equity rule is simply “messaging”, then repeal of the rule is also “messaging”. It is a message that has a chilling effect of the political action taking place at your level.
developing tools for students to succeed in school INCLUDE equity.
every superintendent in the state supports retaining the rule
a repeal has tangible effects, and would mean loss of professional learning, materials and formal processes for parental feedback
the effort placed to get this rule passed 3 years ago was filled with tough questions about equity, and we got there. Alternately, there are current USBE board members who are actively working to defund public education.
for those board members who state that nothing will change after repealing the rule, this is absolutely not true. There is already clear shift in classrooms after passage of H.B. 427 Individual Freedom in Public Education (https://le.utah.gov/~2023/bills/static/HB0427.html)
The rumors are that this repeal is being forced on the board before the Republican caucus to show alignment to conservative causes. You know, and we know that this is absolutely political.
What exactly is wrong with Educational Equity? What about this definition is disturbing for the board? Reference https://www.utah.gov/pmn/files/745615.pdf. I encourage you to review the file.
Quite frankly, the policy may be there today, but the impact is not present in schools. It is disingenuous to say that the Education Equity Rule is not relevant because other policies are in place elsewhere. The reality is that discrimination has been happening and is happening today, and the USBE is not taking it seriously.
We need to do MORE to ensure Educational Equity at this time. It is an embarrassment for the Board to consider a repeal of the Rule when considering events taking place in the past year.
With a politically elected board, what is the expectation going forward? Should our children, who attend public education classes for 13 years in K-12 experience continued political shenanigans based on the partisan whims of the Board? You remove stability and you lose credibility.
On a personal note, I have 3 children who benefited from the public education that Utah provides. I have a daughter with disabilities who benefited from IDEA and 504 accommodations, but more importantly was accepted by her peers specifically because equity programs existed (i.e. fostering a learning environment that was safe and respectful of students and educators). It was how other students learned to see her as a person, and how she gained and shared important social recognition, and earned opportunities in education and sports working with her peers.
I emphatically request that the Board vote AGAINST Repeal of Educational Equity Rule (R277-328)
Last, I know that my representative Natalie Cline WILL NOT and CANNOT represent me due to her extreme partisan bias. She is a scourge on the face of public education who actively works against the better interests of the majority of tax-paying Utahns putting their children through our public school programs. If only I had a board representative who believed in the betterment of education rather than to tear it down.
This letter is posted for reference in work I have performed or been involved in.
April 11, 2021 – a Response to Jordan District Decision on closing Bingham & Herriman Life Skills Programs
To the Jordan District School Board, and to the Jordan District Special Education team:
I understand that the Jordan School district has decided to pull the Life Skills programs from both Herriman and Bingham High Schools. This decision was made without adequate input from educators, the community, the impacted students (both abled and disabled) and the parents of the children with Special Needs. Budgetary considerations are a wholly inadequate defense to uproot kids who will be impacted by the move. The decision destroys the community fabric in these schools by taking away opportunities for inclusion, empathy, leadership; and erodes purpose and service.
You may recall that the Utah PTA recently hosted the Utah PTA Advocacy Conference in 2020, where Tim Shriver was a keynote speaker and delivered a presentation on “Building Bridges of Understanding through Social and Emotional Learning“. Our Utah state Governor Herbert at that time spoke of the importance of the social/emotional learning movement.
“Social connection drives learning and the brain has a social filter: if relationships are weak or damaged, learning is too. On top of these challenges, schools are increasingly diverse and rightly responsible for optimizing the chances for all children to feel welcome and supported. If a pattern of bullying and divisiveness exists, children of all backgrounds will suffer. ”
“For over a generation, educators have been working to make schools into places that offer children a path to resisting being a part of this cycle of anxiety, bullying, and despair. That’s what schools need to do now more than ever—teach and model the skills and values that will reduce stress and promote positive relationships and success in school and life. To do so, educators are welcoming efforts to promote the skills, values, and beliefs that reduce divisiveness and isolation and promote learning, belonging, and purpose for all.“
– Business Insider: Tim Shriver Op-Ed, Dec 8 2020
If you want to improve student outcomes, make decisions that build character, raise empathy and grow inclusion in our schools.
Removing students with disabilities from our public schools destroys bonds for these students, both abled and disabled. These relationships are critical for students, who form lifelong bonds and shape perspectives on individuality, purpose, and understanding.
Perhaps you can instead focus on building programs that grow Leadership, Unification, Mentoring/Aide programs, Sports, Arts and Community at these schools – these are all areas that students with disabilities can teach and engage in.
Introduce a Diversity Officer role for Student Body Officers. Students with disabilities should help to plan, host and drive events
Charity events like Bingham True Blue and Herriman Hearts of Gold programs should not be the only consideration or kind of outreach that high schools participate in. Students with disabilities want to contribute, be accepted, and find respect within their communities. This is only found through real engagement. I’m seriously recommending you take 5 minutes to play the Inclusion Tiles game at https://www.generationunified.org/games/inclusion-game-page-1/
Work with the UHSAA Utah High School Activities Association to grow sports programs and host #PlayUnified events. https://www.uhsaa.org/unified/
My daughter Natalie attended schools in the Jordan School district and benefited from being part of mainstream classes, social organizations, sports programs and in SBO leadership roles. She is a Special Olympics Youth Ambassador today, where she speaks about inclusion and unified programs that grow empathy and understanding, and enhance the social development of ALL students. https://unite.us/
The decision on closing Bingham & Herriman Life Skills Programs is wrong. You need to reconsider the impact of change and how profoundly negative this will be to all students, to staff and the spirit of these schools.
