Here’s what some Thurston County school board candidates say about critical race theory
Gateway Rotary wrapped up its local candidate forums last week with school board candidates for North Thurston Public Schools and the Olympia School District.
The candidates in attendance were Pamela Johnson and Tiffany Sevruk, both of whom are running for the North Thurston District 2 seat being vacated by longtime school board member Chuck Namit. Also in attendance was Darcy Huffman, who is running for the District 3 seat in Olympia.
In the interest of equal time, The OIympian also reached out to North Thurston District 3 incumbent Jennifer Thomas and District 3 challenger Asuka Conyer, as well as the other Olympia candidates: District 3 candidate Mark Boyer, District 5 incumbent Scott Clifthorne and District 5 challenger Don Mitchell.
Rotary members asked a variety of questions, including one about critical race theory, a term that has grabbed headlines and TV time.
A recent Associated Press story explained the theory this way: “Critical race theory is a way of thinking about America’s history through the lens of racism. Scholars developed it during the 1970s and 1980s in response to what they viewed as a lack of racial progress following the civil rights legislation of the 1960s.”
The question that was asked of the candidates: What is your understanding of critical race theory and do you believe it should be taught in your school district?
Here’s what they had to say.
North Thurston candidates
District 2
JOHNSON: “Critical race theory is not a curriculum, it’s a term that was coined 40-plus years ago,” said Johnson, an academic and behavioral intervention specialist at Rochester High School. “We need to make sure that we’re understanding what it is and how it’s being addressed. It’s not being taught in schools.
“What’s going on is that folks are putting diversity and equity under one umbrella and defining that as critical race theory and that’s not what it is. Our students are asking questions about why a particular group of people are oppressed and why it’s like that, and we have the right to tell them the truth of what that is. I know when Juneteenth (a holiday recognizing the emancipation of slaves) came around, a lot of people didn’t know what that was. I was able to facilitate that conversation in my school.”
SEVRUK: “I receive emails every single day from parents asking my position on this,” said Sevruk, a real estate investor and volunteer educator. “And right now the schools are saying they are not teaching critical race theory, but that it’s specifically in college. I don’t know what’s happening in our schools, but I have been to board meetings where parents are speaking out against it, and these are parents of all races speaking out against it.
“All I can say is what I have witnessed myself, and these are from school board meetings around the country where parents of all races are saying that it comes down to ’victims’ and ‘oppressors,’ and I just don’t think this divisiveness is good. I understand we have an alternative in DEI (diversity, equity and inclusion) and I would like to look more into that. Parents are speaking up. They do not want critical race theory and we need to be open to them.”
District 3
CONYER: “It is imperative that communities of families understand that critical race theory is not being taught to students in the K-12 system,” said Conyer, a 2020 graduate of River Ridge High School and a current student at the University of Washington-Tacoma. “CRT is a specified field within college and university courses.
“However, being half-Black and half-Japanese, this is a topic that is personal to me growing up in the NTPS school district. It is incredibly important for students to have a history curriculum that reflects the world around them. Racism has and continues to exist in our history, and will continue to affect future generations. It would be an injustice to not allow for an education that addresses racial and social inequities.”
THOMAS: “I do not support teaching CRT,” said Thomas, the District 3 incumbent. “The intricacy of theory development and concept understanding, as well as the continuous evolvement of theory through research and hypothetical testing takes lots of time and energy to understand. What our students observe and the behaviors we model, as well as their ability to learn compassion and empathy as humans, will make a greater impact on them and their lives than anything else.
“I do support an environment that fosters a multi-view perspective of culture that allows students to make connections between historical and present events in order to drive future positive change.”
Olympia candidates
District 3
BOYER: “This question has been one of the most asked and sadly it is very divisive,” said Boyer, a financial adviser. “It has been politicized and misrepresented by both sides. What I do know is that OSD doesn’t currently teach CRT. Also, from what I know and understand, critical race theory was designed for higher education/collegiate level courses. I do not believe we should incorporate it into our schools at the younger ages, no different than a collegiate course that requires a more mature and developed student to fully understand what is being taught.
“I fully support finding ways to teach our kids tools to deal with racial inequities, or any other form of discrimination they encounter. I’ve been involved in diversity, equity and inclusion training and committees as part of serving on other boards, and believe there’s good work being done to help resolve issues around race and equity in our community.”
HUFFMAN: “Critical race theory is not taught in the Olympia School District,” said Huffman, who spent 25 years in banking and finance. “First of all, I feel we are a great nation, but we do have a checkered past, and I do believe that there is no possible way that we can teach U.S. history without talking about race, or women’s suffrage, or other kinds of oppression. It’s just part of our history.
“But the way we teach it doesn’t have to be divisive, and I can’t imagine any teacher in the district teaching our history in a way that divides us. But we really do need to teach our kids the truth. Why? Because if they don’t learn the truth from teachers and parents, then they’re going to believe whatever.”
District 5
CLIFTHORNE: “Systemic racism is an undeniable reality in our schools, and many other institutions,” said Clifthorne, the District 5 incumbent. “One doesn’t need to look any further than our own district’s racial disproportionality with respect to graduation rates, discipline, participation in music programs, etc. to see that our district, and districts all around the state and country, aren’t serving BIPOC students as well as they can and should.
“These structural biases aren’t going to resolve themselves. That is why I strongly support Outcome 4 of our district’s strategic plan: ‘Our students will have the skills, knowledge and courage to identify and confront personal, systemic, and societal bias.’ That will require a conscious effort to improve our levels of cultural competence as a system. That is work I’ve been doing for the last four years, and work I’m happy to continue doing.”
MITCHELL: “Critical race theory posits that there are existing societal power differentials between groups, where one group uses this power differential to oppress others,” said Mitchell, a nurse and an assistant professor of nursing. “The intent of critical race theory research is to identify and rectify these structural inequities. I do not support using CRT in schools because it is being improperly applied, and mostly used as a buzzword for people to bash their political opponents.
“I have found that most everyone in the Olympia area across the political spectrum agrees that racism exists and should be addressed. Building an ‘anti-racist’ curriculum in schools must focus on building empathy for others who don’t identify the same way, or have the same life experiences. Empathy is an all-inclusive curricular organizing principle that brings people together from all walks of life to address the scourge of racism.”
This story was originally published October 29, 2021 at 5:45 AM.
