Press Release | Parents Defending Education

On October 11, Parents Defending Education emailed 47 state school board associations for comment on the NSBA’s September 29 letter (Hawaii and Washington DC are not members of NSBA, and Virginia & Louisiana had already made public statements). We asked all organizations the following questions:

1. As the [state association] has not yet commented on the National School Board Association’s September 29 letter to President Biden that requested federal intervention in local school board issues – which likened civic participation to “domestic terrorism and hate crimes” and cited the Patriot Act – Parents Defending Education would like to know whether your organization was involved in the creation of this letter and whether you agree with its substance and tone. If not, have you contacted the NSBA to let them know?
2. Can you please tell us how, going forward, your organization defines “intimidation,” harassment,” and “threat”?
3. Finally, do you plan to report individuals in your state to the U.S. Department of Justice – or do you believe that concerns can be adequately managed by local and state law enforcement?

This list will be updated as responses are received.

As of November 18th, 26 states have distanced themselves from the NSBA’s letter: Alabama, Arkansas, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, New Hampshire, New Jersey, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, Wisconsin and Wyoming.

Fifteen states have taken further action—Alabama, Florida, Illinois, Kentucky, Louisiana, Missouri, Mississippi, Montana, New Hampshire, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Virginia and Wisconsin — to withdraw membership, participation, or dues from NSBA.

On November 18th, the Virginia School Board Association voted to terminate membership in the NSBA.

Read more at DefendingEd.org.