SPRINGFIELD, Mo. (KMOX) - Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt announced he's suing one of the state's largest school districts over an alleged open records law violation to hides its "effort to indoctrinate our kids through the divisive lens of" critical race theory (CRT).
The lawsuit was filed Tuesday against Springfield Public Schools and claims the district attempted to "avoid transparency on CRT in student curriculum and teacher training materials." He made a number of posts on Twitter explaining that more than 3,500 staff members were required to participate in a training course to "introduce the components of critical race theory from educational research with applications to the district."
CRT, the idea that racism is systemic in the nation’s institutions and that they function to maintain the dominance of white people in society, has become a controversial topic in recent years. In Missouri, only one school district reported having approved curriculum with lessons about CRT, according to a survey this summer from the Department of Education.
“Parents have every right to know exactly what is being taught to their children, especially when public school systems are implementing components of critical race theory and so-called ‘antiracism’ teachings in teacher trainings and applying social justice scorecards to math and other core curriculum,” said Schmitt. “Springfield Public Schools has skirted our efforts to demand answers and transparency for parents who send their kids to Springfield Public Schools by demanding exorbitant fees for public records. Now, we’re taking Springfield Public Schools to court for those public records. I will always fight for parents’ rights to know exactly what schools are teaching their children.”
You can read the full lawsuit, here:
Schmitt filed a Sunshine Law request to find out more about possible CRT and antiracism materials and teachings being supplied or taught to students.
In response, Springfield Public Schools provided a fee estimate that demanded an initial deposit of $37,000. The lawsuit alleges, “Springfield Public Schools violated § 610.026.2 [the Sunshine Law] by demanding a deposit for items or services other than copies as a precondition to making public records available to the Attorney General’s Office.”
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