LILA MAIOLO

The Clarke County School District Board of Education reluctantly moved to pass the IKBB Policy: Divisive Concepts Complaint Resolution Process in their meeting on Thursday. By Lila Maiolo. 528 words, photos, video.

The Clarke County School District Board of Education amended their meeting agenda and, after extensive discussion, moved to pass IKBB Policy: Divisive Concepts Complaint Resolution Process at their monthly meeting in the CCSD administrative building on Thursday. 

The divisive concepts bill bans educators from teaching what it defines as “divisive concepts.” These include instruction that the United States is “fundamentally or systemically racist” as well as that “one race or ethnicity is inherently superior to another race or ethnicity.” The policy addresses a process for resolving complaints from students and parents regarding these concepts. 

Newly appointed district superintendent, Robbie Hooker, brought the policy to the board’s attention during his report. School boards across the state were expected to vote on the policy by Aug. 1 and have a report due on Nov. 1, putting pressure on the board to vote on it before this deadline. 

“We have 12,500 students counting on us to make a decision,” Hooker said. “The decision that we make will impact them. They are our customers, we have to do what is right for our students.” 

Hooker said that 149 districts had approved the policy and 11 were still pending. He added that, since the policy is a law, CCSD risks losing its charter status as well as state funding if it fails to pass. 

The board moved to pass adding voting on the policy to the night’s agenda, with only board member Nicole Hull voting in opposition. Board members later discussed their differing interpretations of the policy. Specifically, District 3 board member Linda Davis said that she does “not see the harm” in the policy. Board President Dr. LaKeisha Gantt, however, disagreed.

“It pretty much does exactly what it’s arguing against, right, which is sowing division,” Gantt said.

Gantt said she believes that the policy prevents teachers from appropriately addressing historical concepts which may make students feel uncomfortable.. She mentioned controversial historical events, such as slavery and the Jim Crow era, and said she believes it is important to be able to discuss these concepts.

“We have a very low threshold for discomfort and a low threshold for truth when it comes to racism and I think it’s absolutely ridiculous,” Gantt said.

Other board members, such as Dr. Tawana Mattox and Heidi Hensley, agreed with Gantt’s disapproval of the policy. However, they also expressed concerns that the possible loss of charter status and funding would also negatively impact students. Hensley said she “felt backed into a corner” as a result of these conflicting issues. 

Hooker suggested that the board work with lawyers to create more specific guidelines as to what exact steps the board would take to resolve the complaints the policy describes. He concluded the discussion by voicing his trust in the district’s teachers. 

“I can’t predict who’s going to make complaints, but I think we have the right educators to teach the right things to our kids,” Hooker said. 

The board then voted on the policy, with Davis moving to approve it and Dr. Patricia Yager seconding this motion. The board passed the policy in a 6-3 vote, with Gantt, Dr. Mumbi Anderson and Kirrena Gallagher voting against the policy.

Why I Wrote This Story

As a part of my News Reporting and Writing course, each student was assigned to cover a “beat.” I was, personally, on the education beat. Thus, I attended the October CCSD school board meeting to learn more about relevant education issues in Athens-Clarke County. Similarly to our news conference story, I prepared for and attended this event. However, I also conducted a handful of personal interviews with members of the school board after the meeting was over to gain more details about the topics that were discussed and enrich my story. This helped me learn how to act quickly in order to gain sufficient information for my story, as well as how to work efficiently under a very tight deadline.