Testifying on Thursday morning before the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions to confirm her nomination as Secretary of Education, Linda McMahon laid out a blunt agenda to reform the embattled agency.
“So what’s the remedy?” she asked rhetorically. “Fund education freedom, not government-run systems. Listen to parents, not politicians. Build up careers, not college debt. Empower states, not special interests. Invest in teachers, not Washington bureaucrats.”
How refreshing.
McMahon’s directives are sorely needed in various states, especially New York and Colorado.
Concerned parents in the upstate New York Penfield school district were shut down at a school board meeting this week after expressing concern over a perverted book being used with children as young as five years of age.
The book at the center of the controversy was “The Rainbow Parade: A Celebration of LGBTQIA+ Identities and Allies.”
The illustrated book contains drawings of naked people, so-called “furries,” and even two people wearing leather “bondage” attire.
One father, John Feathers, rose and addressed the board.
“If you think that that’s appropriate for children to see, then there’s something wrong with you,” he said. “You need to have a mental evaluation. There’s no reason that should be in the schools whatsoever at all. You can see the guy’s butt is clearly out.”
How did the board respond to the outraged mothers and fathers?
Instead of giving the parents a hearing and pledging to investigate, the board dug their heels in and began lecturing those gathered on how to officially file complaints.
“It’s our board meeting,” said one parent. “We pay you!” shouted another.
The board then proceeded to abruptly adjourn the meeting, magnifying the agitation of the already fuming parents.
More public school dysfunction?
Here in Colorado, school officials in Jefferson County are apologizing to the parents of a 17-year-old female student who was groomed by a female teacher – with the help of other instructors.
Social studies teacher Leann Kearney at Columbine High School became physically involved with the student. Fellow teachers at the school helped the young woman falsify a federal form declaring herself homeless so that she could move in with Kearney.
Making a bad situation even worse, officials hid the wickedness including the falsification of the paperwork from the student’s parents. When the student turned 18, the two individuals moved out of the state.
In a statement, the Jeffco School District acknowledged the heinous offense:
Obviously, the student did not meet the criteria to be considered homeless and the staff involved in this isolated incident were addressed as part of the investigation as the proper channels in place were not followed.
While we have taken every step to remove this former employee from Jeffco and prevent her from working in another educational setting… we recognize this is of little comfort to the family…. we deeply regret how profoundly this violation has affected their family.
Of course, not every public school in America is riff with this type of deliberate deviance, but it’s this flavor of destructive dysfunction that’s leading many mothers and fathers to seek alternative education options for their children.
Instead of collaborating and cooperating with parents, far too many schools are currently engaged in open combat with the very people whose taxes are paying their salaries.
It’s no wonder that homeschooling is the fastest-growing form of education in the United States, expanding at between 2% and 8% annually. It’s now estimated that over 3 million American children are being taught at home in 2025.
Parents in the Penfield and Jeffco school districts are justifiably incensed and demanding officials clean house and reform the corrupt and perverted systems. It won’t be easy. They and countless other moms and dads need prayer, wisdom, and creative and innovative energy to help transform a broken public education system that is currently on life support.
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