State Responds To TVUSD's Decision To Use Outdated Textbooks For Kids

TEMECULA, CA — After hours of public comments Tuesday night and into early Wednesday morning during its regular scheduled meeting, the Temecula Valley Unified School District governing board failed to adopt an updated social sciences curriculum for elementary grades.

In a 2-3 vote — with board members Joseph Komrosky, Jennifer Wiersma and Danny Gonzalez casting the three nays — the board again rejected TCI's Social Studies Alive curriculum, which meets all state standards and is FAIR Education Act-compliant.

Instead, during the upcoming school year TVUSD students in grades 1-5 will learn from outdated instructional materials, currently in use, that date back to at least 2006.

Senate Bill 48, otherwise known as the Fair, Accurate, Inclusive, and Respectful (FAIR) Education Act, was signed by California Gov. Jerry Brown in 2011. The law requires school districts to include instruction in history-social science about the role and contributions of people with disabilities; lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender Americans; and other ethnic and cultural groups.

The act prohibits teachers and school districts from promoting discriminatory bias, and it requires districts to adopt textbooks and instructional materials that accurately portray the above groups.

The district's outdated curriculum is not FAIR Act-compliant.

Still, it was selected over the TCI curriculum that was piloted in the district last year and was recommended for adoption by 47 TVUSD educators. Additionally, input was sought from parents of the nearly 1,300 TVUSD students enrolled in the pilot.

A Wednesday morning emailed statement from Gov. Gavin Newsom office's read, “The school board’s radicalized majority is willfully violating the law, subverting the will of parents, and forcing children to use an out-of-print textbook from 17 years ago. The Governor will ensure students begin the school year with access to adequate, up-to-date materials and fine the district for breaking the law. Stay tuned.”

On July 13, Newsom warned that if the TVUSD board didn't adopt a FAIR Act-compliant curriculum during Tuesday's meeting, the state will deliver TCI's Social Studies Alive textbooks "into the hands of children and their parents" and will "send the district the bill and fine them for violating state law.”

The books, if sent, will be returned to the state, Komrosky said.

Under state education code, the district is required to bring current its outdated social sciences program. On May 16, the same majority of the TVUSD board — Komrosky, Wiersma and Gonzalez — rejected TCI's Social Studies Alive curriculum before doing so again this week.

At the heart of the trio's initial argument against adoption is a short bio on slain California gay rights leader Harvey Milk in TCI supplemental material for grades 4-5.

During the May 16 board meeting, Komrosky and Gonzalez referred to Milk as a "pedophile."

At this week's board meeting, Wiersma suggested amending board policy to ban instructional materials that include "pornography, erotica, graphic descriptions or depictions of violence (including sexual violence), inappropriate vulgarity or profanity, or other obscene material." She also advocated that instructional materials be age-appropriate and course-related.

Board members agreed pornography has no place in the district, but questions about who would decide what is inappropriate were raised.

Board member Allison Barclay said a system is currently in place that allows students and families to opt out of objectionable material, but Wiersma called for added "guardrails" that are seen by many as a form of censorship.

Komrosky listed a number of books at TVUSD libraries that he wants banned on campuses, including "The Lovely Bones" by Alice Sebold, "The Bluest Eye" by Toni Morrison and "Push" by Sapphire. It wasn't clear on which campuses those books were found.

As a result of this week's decision to utilize the old social sciences curriculum for the upcoming school year, the district needs to order more of the outdated textbooks and it's estimated the cost will be approximately $162,000.

Given the controversial move, more lawsuits against the district could arise.

During a 3-2 vote at this week's meeting, it was decided by the board that all legal matters previously handled by district counsel Atkinson Andelson Loya Rudd & Romo be transferred to the law firm of Orbach Huff & Henderson LLP. Barclay and board member Steven Schwartz cast the dissenting votes.

Barclay called the new legal firm "expensive" and said a recent monthly bill from Orbach Huff & Henderson LLP came in at approximately $22,000 — well above normal.

While the board is divided on many issues, during this week's meeting members voted unanimously to adopt the California Studies Weekly social sciences curriculum for district kindergarteners. That program went through the same vetting process as the TCI curriculum.

Efforts are underway to recall Komrosky, Wiersma and Gonzalez. They were elected to the TVUSD board in November.

Related:

• State Threatens Temecula Valley USD Over Textbook Controversy
• State Investigation Launched Into Temecula Valley USD Board
• Temecula Valley USD Board President Publicly Criticized By Newsom
• TVUSD School Board Fires Superintendent Amid Curriculum Clash