Parents Defending Education (PDE) filed a complaint to the Department of Education after an Illinois school held programs for select racial groups.
According to the group, the Illinois Math and Science Academy held a retreat for members of the Brotherhood Sister Circle (BHSC), a club for black and Latino students.
The Daily Wire obtained the complaint, which reads, “PDE and its members oppose discrimination on the basis of race and political indoctrination in America’s schools.”
Illinois Mathematics and Science Academy is offering affinity group programming to some that is not offered to all. Admittance into the Brotherhood Sister Circle affinity group is solely based on individual’s race and sex. Specifically, the group is open only to ‘Black’ and ‘Latinx’ individuals and certain events are further divided based on the individual’s sex.”
The complaint described break-out sessions occurring at the event that “target certain groups of students based on the color of their skin.”
“By intentionally separating students based on the basis of skin color and gender for educational programming, this unlawful practice perpetuates and condones discrimination in one of the state’s leading STEM institutions,” PDE wrote. “This will have a long-term impact on the institution, as well as the individuals who inhabit it.”
The move comes as math and science scores across the United States are on the decline.
The state of California adopted new math standards that prioritize “meaning-making” and equity over traditional problem-solving.
The president of the California State Board of Education, Linda Darling-Hammond, said, “The United States has not been teaching math effectively or equitably. We are one of the lower-achieving countries … and California is below the national average in its achievement in mathematics.”
Similarly, Oregon’s Department of Education is training teachers on how to disrupt “systemic inequities” in mathematics.
“Understanding the systemic inequities of schooling, how to disrupt them, and the nature of and strategies to enact ambitious math instruction are central to being successful with this reform,” a document on math teaching reads. “The modules offer a focus on equitable teaching practices and how to ensure success for all students, especially students of color, emergent bilingual students, and students from families of low income, all of whom have been historically underserved by schooling.”
