State school board members discussing issues of race, equity
Jun 2, 2021, 10:10 AM
FILE PHOTO: Jeffrey Allred / KSL News
SALT LAKE CITY — Members of the Utah State Board of Education are discussing matters of race and equity — and how they are taught at school from kindergarten through high school.
Equity, race on school board radar
The Standards & Assessment Committee meets again Wednesday to talk about a board rule called “Educational Equity in Schools.”
It says public schools in Utah cannot give instruction promoting the idea that one person is inherently superior or inferior to another because of sex, race, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity or any other protected class. Nor can they teach that a protected class determines the content of a person’s character, or that an individual bears responsibility for the past actions of people from the same group.
The rule also prohibits discrimination or adverse treatment for a student or teacher because of their background.
They also want to make sure the public knows about training regarding equity or instruction, by approving such training in a public meeting and making it available online.
The committee members have been discussing this proposed rule for several months. It has been through several drafts and is five pages long. In a meeting last week, they discussed some amendments to the rule on race and equity in school, before giving it preliminary approval. The full board may consider adopting the rule in their meetings later this week.
