A Waste of $130,000 of ‘Stimulus Money’?
At OpenMarkets.org on Thursday, Hans Bader writes of how the Omaha, Nebraska, Public Schools “spent $130,000 in federal stimulus funds to buy a diversity manual for 8,000 teachers, administrators, support staffers — even janitors," citing a long news report from the Omaha World-Herald.
According to the World-Herald:
“The book by Virginia education consultants could raise some eyebrows with its viewpoints.
“The authors assert that American government and institutions create advantages that “channel wealth and power to white people,” that color-blindness will not end racism and that educators should “take action for social justice.”
“The book says that teachers should acknowledge historical systemic oppression in schools, including racism, sexism, homophobia and “ableism,” defined by the authors as discrimination or prejudice against people with disabilities.
“The authors argue that public school teachers must raise their cultural awareness to better serve minority students and improve academic achievement.
“The Omaha school board approved buying 8,000 copies of the book — one for every employee, including members of the custodial staff — in April. The decision to buy the book was made 11-0, with board member Mary Ellen Drickey passing on the vote.”
The World-Herald story identified the book this way:
“The book that OPS bought, “The Cultural Proficiency Journey: Moving Beyond Ethical Barriers Toward Profound School Change,” includes a worksheet for teachers to score themselves on a continuum of cultural sensitivity. The continuum ranges from “cultural destructiveness,” as evidenced by genocide and ethnocide, to “cultural proficiency,” depicted as the highest level of awareness.
“Only those educators who acknowledge the existence of white privilege in America, that “white” is a culture in America and that race “is a definer for social and economic status” can reach proficiency, the authors contend. Those who score poorly on the worksheet are asked in the book what they will do “to align yourself with the values expressed.”
As noted above, the book’s authors are Virginia educators. A Google search identifed their website on the Internet.
Mr. Bader uses the $130,000 grant as an introduction to a longer discussion about the wasteful stimulus bill, which itself makes for interesting reading.
A search of the Arlington Public Schools website, however, reveals that APS has a program of “cultural competence,” including the following two sections of APS's “cultural competence” webpages:
Council for Cultural Competence
“The Arlington Public Schools Council for Cultural Competence was established in the Fall of 2003 in response to School Board budget direction and request by the Superintendent to provide diversity training. The primary role of the Council is to develop the framework (infrastructure) for permanent systemwide cultural competence activities including ongoing diversity training for all staff. The Council is made up of diverse representatives from different scale groups and departments. The Council serves as bridge builders, data collectors, educators, promoters of the diversity initiatives, reviewers of policies and procedures, and special events sponsors. The Council also networks with affinity groups and advises the Superintendent on matter related to diversity.
“The Council began the process of directing this initiative by engaging in thoughtful discussions, participating in diversity awareness exercises, viewing media materials, and exploring various actions that needed to occur to develop a system of sustained professional development. Such activities support the school systems’ goals of rising student achievement, eliminating the achievement gap between White and Black students and White and Hispanic students, effective relationships, and responsive education while formally acknowledging and valuing the contributions of all groups represented in the Arlington Public Schools workforce.”
"Background" of the "Executive Summary"
“The Audit was conducted from January through April, 2006 and consisted of a series of focus groups to collect qualitative data and review of key documents relevant to APS’ diversity goals. A total of 89 participants, drawn from all areas of the school system workforce, participated in seven (7) focus groups conducted by NMCI. The review of key documents assessed the degree to which APS policies, procedures and strategic direction support its diversity goals. The methods used by NMCI to conduct the Audit allowed an assessment of the strengths, challenges and needs of APS related to building an inclusive environment throughout the school system. It should be noted that the focus group data was collected from a very small sample of APS employees (about .030% of the workforce) and, therefore, is not representative of the thoughts or experiences of all employees nor are the results necessarily reflective of employees’ full experience in the workplace.”
Just wondering: how much of APS’ estimated cost per pupil of $18,115 for FY 2012 results from the cultural competency program, not to mention the cost of the 2006 staff cultural audit. When we obtain the costs, we will update this Growls.