Proposed AP History Textbook Stirs Debate In Murrieta Valley USD

MURRIETA, CA — A single 11th-grade AP U.S. history book recommended by a team of teachers and staff in the Murrieta Valley Unified School District has stirred debate, so a special school board meeting will be held to further discuss whether the text should be part of the district's curriculum next year.

During Thursday's regularly scheduled MVUSD board meeting, trustees were asked to decide whether to adopt 15 history-social science books proposed by the team of more than 30 district teachers and staffers. While Thursday's board discussion addressed the books for grades 6-12, each text came with recommendations from the team on appropriate grade-level use.

All the books were approved by the board during Thursday's meeting except Give Me Liberty! An American History by Columbia University Professor Emeritus of History, Eric Foner, Ph.D. The book was proposed for an 11th-grade AP history class.

Thursday's exercise was normal procedure. The state's education code calls for instructional materials to be adopted every eight years in language arts, mathematics, history-social science, science and other subjects. Approved textbooks are then ordered and, in the MVUSD, will be used in the upcoming school year.

But for reasons not exactly clear, MVUSD Governing Board Trustees Paul F. Diffley, Nicolas Pardue and Julie Vandegrift balked at Give Me Liberty! An American History.

According to the three board members, some parents and community members were concerned about the book but objectionable text passages or chapters were not cited.

However, one public commenter called the book "garbage," claiming it was "part of this CRT thing."

CRT refers to critical race theory, which has been a topic of controversy in Southwest Riverside County. In December, the Temecula Valley Unified School District Governing Board banned CRT.

A faculty page for Foner on Columbia's website states that he "specializes in the Civil War and Reconstruction, slavery, and 19th-century America. He is one of only two persons to serve as President of the Organization of American Historians, American Historical Association, and Society of American Historians. He has also been the curator of several museum exhibitions, including the prize-winning "A House Divided: America in the Age of Lincoln," at the Chicago Historical Society. His book, The Fiery Trial: Abraham Lincoln and American Slavery won the Pulitzer, Bancroft, and Lincoln prizes for 2011. His latest book is Gateway to Freedom: The Hidden History of the Underground Railroad."

Ahead of Thursday's meeting, Pardue — a history and economics teacher — called on people to show up to the meeting. On his Facebook page, he posted, "I would like as many sane people as possible to come and see what is happening...you will be shocked. Large crowd expected."

Pardue, who won election to the MVUSD board in November, had campaign support from the Inland Empire Family PAC, which, according to its website, "works to stop the indoctrination of our children by placing candidates on school boards who will fight for Christian and Conservative values."

The Inland Empire Family PAC, with the support of 412 Church Pastor Tim Thompson, helped three candidates get elected in November to the five-member TVUSD Governing Board. With their new majority, the TVUSD board members' first order of business was to ban CRT.

In response to Pardue's recent social media callout, there was also a high turnout at Thursday's MVUSD board meeting by citizens who feel Southwest Riverside County government positions are being taken over by "extremist conservatives" as a result of backing from 412 Church and the Inland Empire Family PAC.

Local school boards do have the authority to conduct their own evaluation of instructional materials and to adopt books that best meet the needs of their students, according to the district.

MVUSD Trustee Linda J. Lunn pointed out during Thursday's meeting that students have the opportunity to select "alternative assignments" if they object to pieces of a curriculum.

Lunn, along with Trustee Nancy Young, were in favor of adopting all 15 textbooks proposed by the MVUSD educators, citing the team's expertise.

When the MVUSD special board meeting takes place in the coming weeks, the trustees may be better prepared. While Lunn said she read Give Me Liberty! An American History, Board President Diffley asked staff to provide each trustee with a copy of the book in order to be "a little more coherent" at the meeting.