Southern California Faculty Board OKs Curriculum After Gov. Gavin Newsom Threatened a $1.5M Tremendous

TEMECULA, Calif. (AP) — A Southern California college board has voted to approve a social research curriculum for elementary college students, resolving a dispute with Gov. Gavin Newsom over lesson plans that talked about the state’s first overtly homosexual elected public official.

The Temecula Valley Unified Faculty District had beforehand voted to reject the curriculum partially as a result of some board members had been involved the curriculum’s supplementary materials talked about Harvey Milk, the previous San Francisco supervisor and homosexual rights advocate who was assassinated in 1978. Some board members additionally mentioned mother and father had not been adequately consulted in regards to the curriculum.

Rejecting the curriculum meant the district must use a textbook revealed in 2006. These textbooks don’t adjust to a 2011 state legislation that requires faculties to show college students in regards to the historic contributions of homosexual, bisexual and transgender Individuals. Newsom, a Democrat who has typically sparred with Republicans in different states over banning books, threatened to positive the district $1.5 million if it did not approve the curriculum.

The board permitted the curriculum throughout a particular assembly late Friday evening. In addition they instructed the district’s interim superintendent to evaluation a portion of the curriculum that features a dialogue of homosexual rights and the way same-sex marriage got here to be authorized in California. The board beneficial “substituting age acceptable curriculum” that complies with state and federal legislation however “can also be in keeping with the board’s dedication to exclude sexualized matters of instruction from elementary college grade ranges.”

Board President Joseph Komrosky mentioned the vote was not in response to Newsom’s menace, however somewhat to keep away from a lawsuit.

“Gov. Newsom, I act independently and authoritatively from you. I’m a sovereign citizen in the USA of America,” Komrosky mentioned throughout Friday’s assembly. “If we don’t present curriculum — I would like everyone to listen to this — we’ll actually be sued.”

Newsom mentioned Friday’s vote ensures “college students will obtain the fundamental supplies wanted to be taught.”

“However this vote lays naked the true motives of those that opposed this curriculum. This has by no means been about mother and father’ rights. It isn’t even about Harvey Milk — who seems nowhere within the textbook college students obtain,” Newsom mentioned. “That is about extremists’ want to regulate data and censor the supplies used to show our kids.”

Textbooks have grow to be a flashpoint in U.S. politics forward of the 2024 presidential election. In Florida, state training officers revised Black history curriculum to adjust to a legislation signed by Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis, who can also be working for president. The brand new curriculum consists of instructing that individuals who had been enslaved benefited by studying new expertise.

Kimberly Velez, the district’s interim superintendent, assured board members that employees would order the brand new curriculum on Monday and it will arrive in time for the beginning of college subsequent month.

“I do not imagine that what has occurred over the previous few weeks was mandatory,” board member Allison Barclay mentioned. “I believe we may have made this occur a lot earlier. We may have been a lot extra prepared for varsity to start out. It is a little bit unlucky it needed to go this far.”

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