Grapevine-Colleyville school leaders confront controversial proposal on critical race theory, gender

Students’ access to information on race and gender would be restricted in Grapevine-Colleyville under a controversial proposal that would also label any material addressing human sexuality as “potentially pornographic.” The policy, if it were to be adopted as written, would mean employees who violate a wide-ranging list of prohibitions on how schools deal with such information could face punishment. Trustees began discussions on the suggested rules at Monday night’s meeting. It comes as some Republican leaders across the state and country escalate anti-LGBT rhetoric and try to limit what is taught about race and racism in schools, putting students and educators in political crosshairs. The trustees’ actions could foreshadow the types of moves to come in other districts as conservative groups target school board seats, backed by big money. The direction of GCISD – along with dozens of others – could be swayed for years by the results of the May 7 elections. Already, critical race theory fights have factored into the recent races in the district.

During heated public testimony on the proposal, proponents lauded it as a way to increase transparency for parents and to crackdown on books they’ve deemed inappropriate. But opponents called the draft policy a political stunt that would put vulnerable kids at risk. The proposal was recommended by two trustees, Casey Ford and Shannon Braun, according to district documents. Both were sworn in within the past two years, during a period defined by escalating culture wars over COVID-19, library books and critical race theory. Ford said it came together after listening to community concerns. “We’re taking input from the community. We’re hearing things about CRT, inappropriate books,” he said. “I look forward to addressing this.” The board did not vote on the proposal during their lengthy meeting. Instead, board president Jorge Rodríguez said the draft policy will go before a committee of trustees, administrators and lawyers who will later make a recommendation on it to the full board. It will likely change during that time. Trustees noted potential problems with the document, alluding to the fact that attorneys already issued a 48-page legal opinion on it.