We are a coalition of parents who are concerned about dramatic changes that are taking place within MITCH’s educational approach, focus, and content, largely without proper notification or discussion provided to the parents who have enrolled their children at MITCH.
Charter Schools fill an important niche in the educational landscape. They are public schools… but they only survive by providing a kind of education that moves parents to VOLUNTARILY enroll their kids at the charter school, rather than remain in public school.
For us as parents, the primary draw of MITCH Charter School (Multi-sensory Instruction Teaching Children Hands-on) has been a commitment to highly effective learning rather than aligning with politically popular trends in education being used in other public schools.
That means while other schools spend an inordinate amount of time teaching social theories, sexuality, and utilizing new and unproven curriculums that waste time and produce mixed results in students… MITCH was committed to focusing first and foremost on building skills and core knowledge using curriculums and methods that are well established and effective.
The focus on Agriculture at MITCH has always been a nice bonus to our children… but it is the overall difference in philosophy and content that has been our main reason for enrolling our kids.
It is for this reason that we are very concerned about the following developments within MITCH’s focus:
- The coming adoption of Comprehensive Sexuality Education Curriculum which begins teaching things like transgenderism as young as Kindergarten. (See Appendix A)
- The newly announced addition of Social Justice as a thematic focus within MITCH’s Curriculum. (See Appendix B)
- The sudden change from Saxon Math to Common Core math curriculum… an educational trend that has been proven to lower student performance in almost every metric. (See Appendix C)
- MITCH’s fundraising and involvement with non-profits such as VERDE… a non-profit with a very outspoken political agenda that includes not only support for Black Lives Matter, but calls for support of efforts to defund Portland Police. (See Appendix D)
We as parents are concerned enough about these developments at MITCH that we feel they need to be addressed publicly and in person (Not over a zoom call). And if we do not feel satisfied that MITCH is acting in good faith with respect to our students best interest and our interests as parents, we are prepared to remove our children from enrollment and pursue a quality education elsewhere.
Respectfully,
The Undersigned Concerned Parents of MITCH
Appendix A
Comprehensive Sexuality Education Curriculum
We are concerned about Oregon CSE state standards which mandate that:
- Children in KINDERGARTEN are taught in the classroom about
- Their different private parts,
- Touching and consent,
- Diseases like Hepatitis and HIV/Aids
- Transgendersim
- How the media, their friends and family influence their gender expression.
- Children in 1ST GRADE (6 yrs old) are required in the classroom to explain all of the above and “Discuss ways to communicate respectfully with and about people of all gender identities, gender expressions and sexual orientations.”
- Children in 2nd Grade (7 yrs) are also required to describe the “qualities of reliable sources of support when seeking information about sexual and reproductive health, including pregnancy and birth.”
- By 4th Grade (9 yrs) children are expected to be able to define sexual orientation, explain differences between gender identities, identify medically accurate sources of support for sexual health, including sexual orientation and gender identity… and evaluate who at home, at school or in the community is providing medically accurate support.
These are very mature discussions and topics for kids so young. And many of us parents would rather be the ones to educate our children on these things, in a way that is appropriate for them as individuals.
Our Requests
We understand that if the school district adopts this standard, MITCH has no choice but to meet it. But we are very interested in complete transparency about HOW these things will be taught. We expect:
- to be informed well in advance about specifically when these discussions will happen,
- what the content will be,
- and given clear instructions on how to opt our children out of all such discussions should we desire that.
Appendix B
Social Justice (or Equity) in Education
Social Justice, as a category of social theories, is highly politically controversial. We all want justice in society, but “social justice” means something very specific. We can all agree on equality between races, sexes, orientations, etc… but “equity” is not the same thing as equality.
Equality refers to equal treatment under the law. We fully support teaching equality in school. This is a foundational principle of any free, thriving society. We should all be treated equally, and where our society fails at that, measures should be taken to correct it.
But equity, in a social sense, is grounded in Critical Social Justice Theories derived or adapted from Marxism. Achieving equity means grouping people by their skin color, knocking some groups down a peg or two, and boosting others up… to achieve equal outcomes. (Something which no society has ever achieved for any two demographic groups)
The social theories that undergird these ideas are academically controversial at best, and potentially dangerous at worst.
These theories would label all white students as belonging to an “oppressor” class, and all students of color as “oppressed.” This can lead to increased racial alienation and division, resentment between racial groups, and result in actually growing levels of racial prejudice within the student body. Exactly the opposite of what anyone wants.
Even if the words “oppressor” or “oppressed” are never used, even subtly teaching these controversial concepts to children gives us real concern for the psychological well-being, not only of the white students, but also of the students of color at MITCH, since there is some evidence to suggest that these ideas can negatively affect them as well.
Teaching these ideas at MITCH also would represent a distraction from the core skills and knowledge that they each need to best prepare them for college, career and high-functioning adulthood.
And finally, children do not possess the critical thinking capacity to properly process or analyze these concepts themselves. To teach something so controversial to children unable to critically analyze such ideas amounts to indoctrination. These are ideas better covered in High School or College, rather in early stages of academic development.
Our Requests
We would like themes of Social Justice and Equity to be left out of the curriculum.
Updates:
Per MITCH administration, the subjects of Social Justice/Equity had to be included in the curriculum per state mandate. Upon inquiry with the TTSD, we received the following information.
"While charters must teach to the Oregon State Standards, they are not required to teach equity."
At this time we feel mislead by the administration of MITCH regarding this matter and that a politically motivated agenda is taking precedent as opposed to what is best for the students of MITCH. See Appendix D.
Appendix C
Common Core Math
Students at MITCH have been performing very well with the SAXON Math curriculum for a long time, and some have even leaped a full grade level ahead using that program.
But Common Core math would represent a major shift in the method of learning mathematics, which may also may manifest in a drop in student performance. Will students that have been excelling a grade ahead be able continue doing so under common core? Will students that merely meet the current standard struggle to keep up?
These are legitimate questions that most parents haven’t been given an opportunity to ask. And they are especially relevant since common core methods have been found to lower student performance in almost every metric, according to the Center for Standards, Alignment, Instruction, and Learning (C-SAIL). Similar findings have been published by the University of Buffalo-SUNY and the Brown Center Report on American Education.
Even Bill Gates has admitted that the Common Core experiment has been a failure. After 10 years of the abysmal findings, why are we selecting this method for educating our students?
We understand that school will have to be online for a while, but surely this does not mean that we need to adopt a failed educational method.
Our Requests
We would like to see the school either stick with Saxon Math, for which online educational elements are now available through Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. Or select a similarly rigorous and proven curriculum, and give parents the opportunity to ask questions about curriculum changes.
Saxon Math resources:https://www.hmhco.com/programs/saxon-math
C-SAIL Common Core Studyhttps://www.c-sail.org/sites/default/files/Effects%20of%20CCR%20standards%20on%20stu%20achievement_4-2019_AERA.pdf
Appendix D
Non-profit Partnerships at Mitch
It has come to our attention that MITCH has decided to partner with the Non-profit VERDE. The reason for this partnership was explained to us as an effort to improve education within the Latino community, and that this group’s focus on the environment would also connect well with our Ag education.
We are excited at the prospect of helping encourage and support Latino communities, but are not at all comfortable with VERDE’s highly vocal support for Defunding the Portland Police at the top of their website’s homepage.
For an elementary school to partner with any organization that is calling for defunding police seems to us highly inappropriate.
Our Requests
There are other non-profits that are devoted to educational improvement and support of Latino Communities in Portland, such as the Latino Network, which have not been calling for defunding Portland Police. We would like to see MITCH partner with one of these non-profits rather than VERDE.
Website:https://www.latnet.org/
And if MITCH desires to partner with a non-profit that would connect with our Ag program, there are other better options for that as well. Oregon Aglink is one obvious choice.
Websitehttps://aglink.org/
We would like for MITCH to pursue partnerships with these sorts of organizations that we can all proudly get behind, rather than with groups advocating for extreme and divisive political policies.
17 Comments
Baloney. Reactionary tripe from privileged white people offended by the possibility that their children might have the opportunity to understand the experiences of non-white people and strive to make the world a more just place. MITCH thrives on challenging students to achieve their full potential, rather than watering down and underestimating their capacity. Tackling hard subjects is only a "distraction" when it threatens your own power. Respectfully, A concerned MITCH parent of color
I would please urge everyone to do their thorough diligence before talking down about MITCH and/or getting angry. I emailed Keri (Butler) directly about the email and her response was that there were certainly some untruths in it, and she was working currently to send out a response/explanation (as if she doesn't have enough going on). Please everyone - be patient and listen to both sides first before getting upset or making assumptions. I have to admit that if a lot of this is true, my family would some of these areas disturbing as well. However, I want to ensure I am fully educated first before making any rash comments/decisions for my children.
WOW...as a former MITCH family who benefited from the strong Saxon math curriculum and the foundation of Core Knowledge, I am disappointed to see the school become "just another public school". With these changes, there is really no point in going to MITCH...driving your child to and from, school with limited space and resources for play and sports.
How does MITCH differentiate itself from a public school? What is the Vision and Mission of MITCH?
My wife and have been very concerned by recent changes and do not intend to subject our children to the kinds of things that MITCH's new leadership seems bent on teaching. We just decided on a new school, but feel strongly that the quality of education of those that will remain at MITCH is still worth fighting for. These children need a solid education in academics, not ideology and indoctrination.
Parents should have the right to choose what their children are taught. The government should not be allowed to indoctrinate our children.
There are some serious charges and claims in this petition and worth thinking together about as a community. As a clinical psychologist and a parent with a current MITCH student I have some thoughts I’d like to add to the discussion. First, to address concerns about sex education in school. There are many reasons to begin talking about sex and gender at young ages in developmentally appropriate ways. We know that children begin developing gender stereotypes very young, far before reaching kindergarten. Whether they (or we as parents) realize it or not they are thinking about gender and identity. It can be very confusing as adults to sort out these complex dynamics and much more confusing for children. Yet, talking about something is an antidote to the confusion. It communicates to our kids that we aren’t afraid of difficult topics and that we can think about them together. As a parent part of my job is to talk with my kids about it which will inherently carry my individual values and views. Even if my values don’t line with what is in the curriculum, talking about something well means bringing a variety of perspectives. I appreciate MITCH being part of this discussion and welcome their role in helping my kids develop the freedom to talk about sex, bodies, and gender without fear or shame. I’ll address the second and fourth point together. I cannot emphasis enough my appreciation for MITCH’s efforts to include social justice as part of the curriculum. There is obviously a heated debate about these issues in our country and city. I’ll simply say that a social justice focus is a reason I would choose to send my kids to MITCH and I would emphatically request that even more be done to recruit and promote BIPOC teachers and administrators at MITCH. Lastly, while I do not have much (or any) knowledge in choosing curriculum, I do have an interest in understanding and analyzing research. There are problems with the statement in the petition “common c
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We are a coalition of parents who are concerned about dramatic changes that are taking place within MITCH’s educational approach, focus, and content, largely without proper notification or discussion provided to the parents who have enrolled their children at MITCH.
Charter Schools fill an important niche in the educational landscape. They are public schools… but they only survive by providing a kind of education that moves parents to VOLUNTARILY enroll their kids at the charter school, rather than remain in public school.
For us as parents, the primary draw of MITCH Charter School (Multi-sensory Instruction Teaching Children Hands-on) has been a commitment to highly effective learning rather than aligning with politically popular trends in education being used in other public schools.
That means while other schools spend an inordinate amount of time teaching social theories, sexuality, and utilizing new and unproven curriculums that waste time and produce mixed results in students… MITCH was committed to focusing first and foremost on building skills and core knowledge using curriculums and methods that are well established and effective.
The focus on Agriculture at MITCH has always been a nice bonus to our children… but it is the overall difference in philosophy and content that has been our main reason for enrolling our kids.
It is for this reason that we are very concerned about the following developments within MITCH’s focus:
- The coming adoption of Comprehensive Sexuality Education Curriculum which begins teaching things like transgenderism as young as Kindergarten. (See Appendix A)
- The newly announced addition of Social Justice as a thematic focus within MITCH’s Curriculum. (See Appendix B)
- The sudden change from Saxon Math to Common Core math curriculum… an educational trend that has been proven to lower student performance in almost every metric. (See Appendix C)
- MITCH’s fundraising and involvement with non-profits such as VERDE… a non-profit with a very outspoken political agenda that includes not only support for Black Lives Matter, but calls for support of efforts to defund Portland Police. (See Appendix D)
We as parents are concerned enough about these developments at MITCH that we feel they need to be addressed publicly and in person (Not over a zoom call). And if we do not feel satisfied that MITCH is acting in good faith with respect to our students best interest and our interests as parents, we are prepared to remove our children from enrollment and pursue a quality education elsewhere.
Respectfully,
The Undersigned Concerned Parents of MITCH
Appendix A
Comprehensive Sexuality Education Curriculum
We are concerned about Oregon CSE state standards which mandate that:
- Children in KINDERGARTEN are taught in the classroom about
- Their different private parts,
- Touching and consent,
- Diseases like Hepatitis and HIV/Aids
- Transgendersim
- How the media, their friends and family influence their gender expression.
- Children in 1ST GRADE (6 yrs old) are required in the classroom to explain all of the above and “Discuss ways to communicate respectfully with and about people of all gender identities, gender expressions and sexual orientations.”
- Children in 2nd Grade (7 yrs) are also required to describe the “qualities of reliable sources of support when seeking information about sexual and reproductive health, including pregnancy and birth.”
- By 4th Grade (9 yrs) children are expected to be able to define sexual orientation, explain differences between gender identities, identify medically accurate sources of support for sexual health, including sexual orientation and gender identity… and evaluate who at home, at school or in the community is providing medically accurate support.
These are very mature discussions and topics for kids so young. And many of us parents would rather be the ones to educate our children on these things, in a way that is appropriate for them as individuals.
Our Requests
We understand that if the school district adopts this standard, MITCH has no choice but to meet it. But we are very interested in complete transparency about HOW these things will be taught. We expect:
- to be informed well in advance about specifically when these discussions will happen,
- what the content will be,
- and given clear instructions on how to opt our children out of all such discussions should we desire that.
Appendix B
Social Justice (or Equity) in Education
Social Justice, as a category of social theories, is highly politically controversial. We all want justice in society, but “social justice” means something very specific. We can all agree on equality between races, sexes, orientations, etc… but “equity” is not the same thing as equality.
Equality refers to equal treatment under the law. We fully support teaching equality in school. This is a foundational principle of any free, thriving society. We should all be treated equally, and where our society fails at that, measures should be taken to correct it.
But equity, in a social sense, is grounded in Critical Social Justice Theories derived or adapted from Marxism. Achieving equity means grouping people by their skin color, knocking some groups down a peg or two, and boosting others up… to achieve equal outcomes. (Something which no society has ever achieved for any two demographic groups)
The social theories that undergird these ideas are academically controversial at best, and potentially dangerous at worst.
These theories would label all white students as belonging to an “oppressor” class, and all students of color as “oppressed.” This can lead to increased racial alienation and division, resentment between racial groups, and result in actually growing levels of racial prejudice within the student body. Exactly the opposite of what anyone wants.
Even if the words “oppressor” or “oppressed” are never used, even subtly teaching these controversial concepts to children gives us real concern for the psychological well-being, not only of the white students, but also of the students of color at MITCH, since there is some evidence to suggest that these ideas can negatively affect them as well.
Teaching these ideas at MITCH also would represent a distraction from the core skills and knowledge that they each need to best prepare them for college, career and high-functioning adulthood.
And finally, children do not possess the critical thinking capacity to properly process or analyze these concepts themselves. To teach something so controversial to children unable to critically analyze such ideas amounts to indoctrination. These are ideas better covered in High School or College, rather in early stages of academic development.
Our Requests
We would like themes of Social Justice and Equity to be left out of the curriculum.
Updates:
Per MITCH administration, the subjects of Social Justice/Equity had to be included in the curriculum per state mandate. Upon inquiry with the TTSD, we received the following information.
"While charters must teach to the Oregon State Standards, they are not required to teach equity."
At this time we feel mislead by the administration of MITCH regarding this matter and that a politically motivated agenda is taking precedent as opposed to what is best for the students of MITCH. See Appendix D.
Appendix C
Common Core Math
Students at MITCH have been performing very well with the SAXON Math curriculum for a long time, and some have even leaped a full grade level ahead using that program.
But Common Core math would represent a major shift in the method of learning mathematics, which may also may manifest in a drop in student performance. Will students that have been excelling a grade ahead be able continue doing so under common core? Will students that merely meet the current standard struggle to keep up?
These are legitimate questions that most parents haven’t been given an opportunity to ask. And they are especially relevant since common core methods have been found to lower student performance in almost every metric, according to the Center for Standards, Alignment, Instruction, and Learning (C-SAIL). Similar findings have been published by the University of Buffalo-SUNY and the Brown Center Report on American Education.
Even Bill Gates has admitted that the Common Core experiment has been a failure. After 10 years of the abysmal findings, why are we selecting this method for educating our students?
We understand that school will have to be online for a while, but surely this does not mean that we need to adopt a failed educational method.
Our Requests
We would like to see the school either stick with Saxon Math, for which online educational elements are now available through Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. Or select a similarly rigorous and proven curriculum, and give parents the opportunity to ask questions about curriculum changes.
Saxon Math resources:https://www.hmhco.com/programs/saxon-math
C-SAIL Common Core Studyhttps://www.c-sail.org/sites/default/files/Effects%20of%20CCR%20standards%20on%20stu%20achievement_4-2019_AERA.pdf
Appendix D
Non-profit Partnerships at Mitch
It has come to our attention that MITCH has decided to partner with the Non-profit VERDE. The reason for this partnership was explained to us as an effort to improve education within the Latino community, and that this group’s focus on the environment would also connect well with our Ag education.
We are excited at the prospect of helping encourage and support Latino communities, but are not at all comfortable with VERDE’s highly vocal support for Defunding the Portland Police at the top of their website’s homepage.
For an elementary school to partner with any organization that is calling for defunding police seems to us highly inappropriate.
Our Requests
There are other non-profits that are devoted to educational improvement and support of Latino Communities in Portland, such as the Latino Network, which have not been calling for defunding Portland Police. We would like to see MITCH partner with one of these non-profits rather than VERDE.
Website:https://www.latnet.org/
And if MITCH desires to partner with a non-profit that would connect with our Ag program, there are other better options for that as well. Oregon Aglink is one obvious choice.
Websitehttps://aglink.org/
We would like for MITCH to pursue partnerships with these sorts of organizations that we can all proudly get behind, rather than with groups advocating for extreme and divisive political policies.
17 Comments
First of all, who is this petition started by? And why are non-MITCH parents signing this? These accusations are baseless and this anonymous method of approaching this is counter-productive. We will not be signing this, but welcome a conversation with any current MITCH parents who want to discuss why topics such as social justice benefit all kids at MITCH.
Baloney. Reactionary tripe from privileged white people offended by the possibility that their children might have the opportunity to understand the experiences of non-white people and strive to make the world a more just place. MITCH thrives on challenging students to achieve their full potential, rather than watering down and underestimating their capacity. Tackling hard subjects is only a "distraction" when it threatens your own power. Respectfully, A concerned MITCH parent of color
I would please urge everyone to do their thorough diligence before talking down about MITCH and/or getting angry. I emailed Keri (Butler) directly about the email and her response was that there were certainly some untruths in it, and she was working currently to send out a response/explanation (as if she doesn't have enough going on). Please everyone - be patient and listen to both sides first before getting upset or making assumptions. I have to admit that if a lot of this is true, my family would some of these areas disturbing as well. However, I want to ensure I am fully educated first before making any rash comments/decisions for my children.
WOW...as a former MITCH family who benefited from the strong Saxon math curriculum and the foundation of Core Knowledge, I am disappointed to see the school become "just another public school". With these changes, there is really no point in going to MITCH...driving your child to and from, school with limited space and resources for play and sports.
How does MITCH differentiate itself from a public school? What is the Vision and Mission of MITCH?
My wife and have been very concerned by recent changes and do not intend to subject our children to the kinds of things that MITCH's new leadership seems bent on teaching. We just decided on a new school, but feel strongly that the quality of education of those that will remain at MITCH is still worth fighting for. These children need a solid education in academics, not ideology and indoctrination.
Parents should have the right to choose what their children are taught. The government should not be allowed to indoctrinate our children.
There are some serious charges and claims in this petition and worth thinking together about as a community. As a clinical psychologist and a parent with a current MITCH student I have some thoughts I’d like to add to the discussion. First, to address concerns about sex education in school. There are many reasons to begin talking about sex and gender at young ages in developmentally appropriate ways. We know that children begin developing gender stereotypes very young, far before reaching kindergarten. Whether they (or we as parents) realize it or not they are thinking about gender and identity. It can be very confusing as adults to sort out these complex dynamics and much more confusing for children. Yet, talking about something is an antidote to the confusion. It communicates to our kids that we aren’t afraid of difficult topics and that we can think about them together. As a parent part of my job is to talk with my kids about it which will inherently carry my individual values and views. Even if my values don’t line with what is in the curriculum, talking about something well means bringing a variety of perspectives. I appreciate MITCH being part of this discussion and welcome their role in helping my kids develop the freedom to talk about sex, bodies, and gender without fear or shame. I’ll address the second and fourth point together. I cannot emphasis enough my appreciation for MITCH’s efforts to include social justice as part of the curriculum. There is obviously a heated debate about these issues in our country and city. I’ll simply say that a social justice focus is a reason I would choose to send my kids to MITCH and I would emphatically request that even more be done to recruit and promote BIPOC teachers and administrators at MITCH. Lastly, while I do not have much (or any) knowledge in choosing curriculum, I do have an interest in understanding and analyzing research. There are problems with the statement in the petition “common c
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First of all, who is this petition started by? And why are non-MITCH parents signing this? These accusations are baseless and this anonymous method of approaching this is counter-productive. We will not be signing this, but welcome a conversation with any current MITCH parents who want to discuss why topics such as social justice benefit all kids at MITCH.