People involved in the Williamson County School System’s Cultural Competency Committee and people who support those efforts sent emails about the need for social justice and how to handle teachers who resist change.
Emails also reveal Cultural Competency Committee members did not want publicity or for members of the media to attend their meetings.
Committee members and other people who support their efforts sent these emails to one other earlier this month, and Superintendent Mike Looney received some of them.
The Tennessee Star obtained these emails through an open records request to the county school system.
In a March 6 email, a woman named Sara Melamed gave a rundown to Looney about the prior Cultural Competency meeting based on notes she took.
A woman by the same name ran for the Williamson County Commission last year, according to The Tennessean, and she also served on the Williamson County Democratic Party’s Executive Committee.
“They discussed ‘what to do about teachers who are resistant to change,'” Melamed wrote Looney.
“For some teachers it has been considered life-changing and given them new perspective.”
Melamed’s notes also included the following as it pertains to publicizing the committee’s work:
“Why is the committee not being talked about more publicly? Because he’s trying to get people to buy in to the ideas and feel like they’re their own. Give them more ownership and feel like they are the ones who are driving the ideas. You can’t mandate how people think but you can help them change their perspective.”
Nowhere in the email does Melamed explain the identify of the “he” to whom she refers.
A March 5 email from WCS social worker Stacey Yates to Looney, meanwhile, says the following:
“As an advocate for social change and social justice for our ‘sub-pop’ kiddos, I am VERY pleased to see the work and efforts you’re putting forward with cultural competencies and awareness. I am looking forward to more of that happening for our educators AND students for sure!
A March 4 email from WCS Special Projects Manager Erin Caceres reminded Cultural Competency Council members that only select people could attend their next meeting — even though it was a public school-affiliated function.
“I would like to remind everyone that this meeting is for you, our council members/WCS parents, and not for the media or other individuals outside of our WCS community,” Caceres said.
Later that week, on March 6, Caceres sent out an email complaining some teachers “were less engaged” while watching the Cultural Competency videos that preached “white privilege” and America’s supposed dysfunctional history.
“Regardless, we will continue to make these topics an integral part of both our district philosophy as well as our professional development,” Caceres wrote.
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Chris Butler is an investigative journalist at The Tennessee Star. Follow Chris on Facebook. Email tips to [email protected].
Photo “Erin Caceres” (pictured, center) by Erin Caceres and “Sara Melamed” (pictured, right) by Sara Melamed. Stacey Yates is not pictured.
You know this is about enough, you Democrats are nothing but Communist that do nothing but divide the people, destroy our country, and trying to make someone teach something in school that is the most corrupt idea ever heard of, and the corrupt way you trying to get it into schools. And your ideas of thinking white people are racist just because they Do Not Agree with your CRT bull shit. You are forgetting one thing. It’s not the school building your playing with, and it’s not the teachers you trying to change and it’s not the system your trying to corrupt, it’s the kids, and these kids have parents and parents are getting pissed and they are calling for action and I am now going to get involved and help ALL parents that disagree with the CRT trash. I got 4 kids in school and that also got me involved. Not only me, but the entire Organization is now getting involved. All schools will be notified of the up coming rally that will take place at the schools that are involved in CRT. “EQUITY and ANTI-RACISM means: Critical Race Theorie…
[…] The Star reported Tuesday, people involved in the Cultural Competency Committee and people who support those efforts also […]
btw, What is the Tennessee Star?
yOU ARE A MUCKRAKER AND BECAUSE i HAVE SOCKS OLDER THAN YOU, i SUGGEST YOU GOGGLE THAT TERM SO YOU WILL UNDERSTAND THE DISGUST I HAVE WITH PEOPLE LIKE YOU.
Ok, so where is the e-mail discussing how to handle teachers who resist change? Quote from your opening sentence….”how to handle teachers who resist change.” I would like to see that one so I can recognize when they employ these “techniques” in other school districts.
You have to watch the school board meeting. All the members except for a couple are falling all over themselves to kiss Looney’s ring and call whomever disagrees, which they say is a VERY few, “angry,” “stirring the pot,” and “racists!” Teachers MUST stand up to all this! They have to go through hell trying to help some of their students succeed and now they’re being called racists!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yzj_JrAaNTQ
The only justice needed is for these race mongers to be exposed for what they are – liberal apologists.