National School Boards Association Archives

Scandal-Plagued Civil Rights Group Launches Attack on Parental Rights Groups

June 12, 2023 Just the News

The Alabama-based civil rights organization that made its name suing the Ku Klux Klan has put parental rights groups in its sights and for the first time has started tracking the “antigovernment movement” ideology in its annual “Year in Hate & Extremism” reports.

The Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) added “reactionary anti-student inclusion groups” to a list of 702 “antigovernment extremism” groups it tracked in 2022, separate from 523 “hate” groups. The organization focused almost exclusively on just one in its annual report published this week: Florida-based Moms for Liberty, far and away the leader in chapters nationwide.

House Judiciary Committee: ‘No Legitimate Basis’ for Biden Administration to Target Parents Protesting School Boards

March 23, 2023 Admin

The latest report by the House Judiciary Committee declares that there was “no legitimate basis” for the Biden Administration’s efforts to label parents protesting at school board meetings as domestic terrorists and place them under federal investigation.

As reported by Fox News, the Judiciary Committee and its new subcommittee on the Weaponization of the Federal Government have completed an interim staff report on the matter of the federal government’s handling of parents’ rights groups, who were “voicing concerns about controversial curricula and education-related policies.”

Biden Education Department Abruptly Disbands Parent Council Under Threat of Lawsuit Arguing Its Membership Consisted of Leftist Activists

December 6, 2022December 5, 2022 Susan Berry, PhD

The Biden education department has abruptly scrapped its National Parents and Families Engagement Council following a lawsuit against Education Secretary Miguel Cardona by parental rights organizations who argued the council’s membership consisted of leftist activists and Democrat donors.

A statement reported by The74 said the education department “has decided to not move forward with the National Parents and Families Engagement Council.”

Biden Administration Awards over $7 Million to ‘Elevate Parent Voices in Education’ After Smearing Vocal Parents as Potential ‘Domestic Terrorists’

September 17, 2022September 16, 2022 Susan Berry, PhD

The Biden education department announced Thursday it was awarding more than $7 million in competitive grants to eight organizations that have worked to achieve what the department calls “the Biden-Harris Administration’s ongoing efforts to enhance and increase parent and family engagement in local education.”

Grants from the Statewide Family Engagement Centers (SFEC) program, the announcement states, “provide financial support to organizations that offer technical assistance and training to state educational agencies and school districts that effectively engage families over policies, programs, and activities that lead to improvements in student development and academic achievement.”

Judiciary Committee Letter Says Garland’s FBI Mobilized Against Parent Protestors

May 13, 2022May 12, 2022 Peter D'Abrosca

In a lengthy letter addressed to Attorney General Merrick Garland, the House Judiciary Committee accuses the nation’s top attorney of lying under oath, and claims that the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) was deployed to monitor parents who have been protesting school board meetings nationwide.

“It appears that the Biden Administration did in fact mobilize FBI counterterrorism resources to investigate parents for expressing protected political speech at school board meetings. This directly contradicts AG Merrick Garland’s sworn testimony,” said Parents Defending Education, a nonprofit group that advocates for parents rights.

14 States Sue Biden to Divulge Secret Contacts About School Board ‘Domestic Terrorism’ Letter

March 6, 2022March 5, 2022 Admin

The Biden administration is stonewalling 14 states seeking documents preceding Attorney General Merrick Garland’s controversial Oct. 4 memo directing the FBI to prosecute threats against school boards, according to a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) lawsuit filed Friday.

Garland acted in response to a Sept. 29 letter to President Biden from the National School Boards Association (NSBA), widely perceived as equating parental activism with “domestic terrorism.”

National School Boards Association Executive Reportedly Knew About Attorney General’s Memorandum Targeting Parents Before It Was Published

February 15, 2022February 14, 2022 Connecticut Star Staff

A National School Boards Association (NSBA) executive reportedly knew about Attorney General Merrick Garland’s memorandum targeting concerned parents before it was published, according to new information obtained by Parents Defending Education.

Chip Slaven, then-interim executive director of the National School Boards Association (NSBA) knew about Garland’s memorandum that called on the FBI to “use its authority” against parents who threaten or use violence against public school officials, according to an email obtained by Parents Defending Education (PDE) through a public records request.

“I understand Chip knew about the U.S. AG Directives before they were published,” Alabama NSBA member Pam Doyle told Florida NSBA member Beverly Slough in an Oct. 5, 2021 internal email exchange. “So much for communicating with the BOD,” she added.

Over a Hundred Conservative Groups Call on U.S. Education Secretary to Resign over Infamous Letter Equating Concerned Parents to ‘Domestic Terrorists’

January 25, 2022January 24, 2022 Connecticut Star Staff

National School Boards Association meeting

Over 100 conservative groups and leaders are calling on Education Secretary Miquel Cardona to resign over allegations that he collaborated with the National School Boards Association (NSBA) to draft the infamous letter equating parents to domestic terrorists.

The Conservative Action Project (CAP), along with 120 conservative groups and leaders, released a letter Monday calling on Cardona to resign immediately, following reports that he worked with the NSBA and the Department of Justice (DOJ) to silence parents from speaking out about their concerns at America’s public schools, citing “threats” they posed to school boards.

School boards have been battlegrounds for culture wars over mask rules, COVID-19 vaccinations, schools reopening, Critical Race Theory (CRT), gender ideology and remote learning. The Monday letter also calls on Congress to further investigate the NSBA letter “to ensure any other Biden administration officials who were inappropriately involved are held accountable.”

GOP Lawmakers Demand Ouster of Education Secretary over Reported Role in Targeting Parents

January 17, 2022January 16, 2022 Admin

More than 40 House Republicans are calling for the ouster of Education Secretary Miguel Cardona after a report of his apparent role in a national schools group’s calling some concerned parents “domestic terrorists,” while 24 GOP senators are asking the nation’s top education official for answers.

The push comes after Fox News reported earlier this week on emails indicating that Cardona solicited a highly publicized letter to President Joe Biden from the National School Boards Association asking that officials apply the Patriot Act and other counterterror tools to dissenting parents.

An NSBA email said the letter to Biden was a “request from the secretary.” Cardona denied having anything to do with the group’s letter.