Reflecting on today to build the future

By Stacy Shorey, RSU 68 superintendent of schools

As I reflected on the Aug. 3 RSU  68 school board meeting, I thought about the public comments. While it was wonderful to see so many parents/guardians and community members attend the meeting, I was surprised to hear some of those that stood up to say the teachers at SeDoMoCha teach Critical Race Theory (CRT). SeDoMoCha teachers do not teach about Critical Race Theory.

According to Prudence Carter, a professor at the Graduate School of Education at the University of California, Berkeley, CRT is a “legal framework that was developed in the 80’s that explains how structural and racial disparities persist in American society” (Vinopal, Courtney. “Watch: Answering Your Questions on Critical Race Theory.” PBS, Public Broadcasting Service, 28 June 2021, 

www.pbs.org/newshour/nation/watch-live-answering-your-questions-on-critical-race-theory.) Another similar definition from the Britannica Encyclopedia says, Critical race theory is an intellectual movement and a framework of legal analysis according to which (1) race is a culturally invented category used to oppress people of color and (2) the law and legal institutions in the United States are inherently racist insofar as they function to create and maintain social, political, and economic inequalities between white and nonwhite people(www.britannica.com/topic/critical-race-theory). This is a concept taught in graduate school. It is not appropriate for our elementary or middle schools as we do not teach legal frameworks. 

At SeDoMoCha we teach facts and the ability to look at topics or arguments from different perspectives, while maintaining neutrality when sharing different perspectives. Maintaining neutrality is a concept that staff continue to work on. We want our students to be able to think critically, develop thesis statements and provide details to support their thesis. These are all skills that will help them in high school and to be lifelong thoughtful, problem-solving citizens of the United States. 

I was pleased that the school board approved our social studies curriculum as it gives staff a basis to create units of instruction. State legislation mandates that we follow the Maine Learning Results. By themselves, they are very vague and extremely broad. Creating board approved learning targets allows teachers to think about specific instances in history. Of course, it isn’t possible to attack every event in history in elementary or middle school. For example, we look at aspects of US history through fifth grade, and for the full eighth grade year to create a foundation knowing that Foxcroft Academy requires two years of U.S. history to graduate. 

My final reflection on the August school board meeting is that while there were people that spoke about CRT, to my knowledge, none of them had reached out to a teacher or our administration. Our intention, from the school board to the administration to our teaching staff is to work with families and the community. Our mission statement is very clear about that intention as it says,

“At SeDoMoCha, we are building the future by providing our students with the tools they need to succeed in a diverse and ever-changing world. In thought and action, we commit to fostering safety and belonging throughout the academic journey because every member of our SeDoMoCha community is valued. Students, staff, board members, caregivers, families, and community members believe that together we are stronger with a shared vision and commitment to our mission.”

Please do not hesitate to reach out to your child’s teacher, our principal Mr. Gudroe (agudroe@sedomocha.org) or myself (sshorey@sedomocha.org) if you have concerns. We want to meet, listen and problem solve with you because together we are better.