Los Alamitos Unified Adopts Social Justice Standards

The Los Alamitos Unified school board unanimously adopted a set of social justice teaching standards developed by the Southern Poverty Law Center’s Learning for Justice group on Wednesday. This is not a curriculum, according to Superintendent Andrew Pulver, but a framework — equipped with “anti-bias scenarios” — to guide teachers through issues of race and diversity.

The standards have elicited so much controversy that police successfully urged the school board to move the meeting online for safety. Critics say the standards promote “critical race theory,” a decades-old academic concept that conservatives say is undermining social cohesion and destroying the fabric of American society.

Over 170 people submitted statements before Wednesday’s vote. Even though the meeting was held virtually, some 100 protesters gathered outside the school district’s headquarters.

The controversy isn’t over yet. On June 1, the board will vote on curriculum for a high school ethnic studies elective.

Read more at the Los Angeles Times.