Will New Trier comply with the federal order to halt "Diversity, Equity and Inclusion"?
Does "equity" remain a priority New Trier? Plus scroll below for a more realistic and hopeful message from wise voices who actually experienced Jim Crow and other periods of oppression.
Based on the recent White House Executive Order (EO) and this Department of Education guidance letter (“guidance letter”) to end radicalism in schools, including racist “Diversity, Equity and Inclusion” (DEI) programming, federal funding for New Trier and its feeder schools could be at risk.
The EO and guidance letter describe the unhealthy school culture many community parents witness in which “... innocent children are compelled to adopt identities as either victims or oppressors solely based on their skin color and other immutable characteristics.” Furthermore, “DEI programs… frequently preference certain racial groups and teach students that certain racial groups bear unique moral burdens that others do not. Such programs stigmatize students who belong to particular racial groups based on crude racial stereotypes.”
The guidance letter then clarifies that such policies are illegal and could jeopardize funding, stating clearly that: “... race-based decision-making, no matter the form, remains impermissible…Institutions that fail to comply with federal civil rights law may, consistent with applicable law, face potential loss of federal funding.”
“Equity” is the most problematic part of DEI because it ignorantly assigns oppressor or oppressed status based on race or other non-behavioral characteristics.
The majority of local public school funding comes from state and local tax revenue; however, the Federal government, through the Department of Education, provides funds to local schools for various initiatives, including special education. Per the Illinois Report Card, the most recent available public data, New Trier’s budget was $140 million, which included $2.52 million in federal funds, or 1.8%. If New Trier is found to violate the executive order as clearly outlined in the guidance letter, they could lose that funding.
Is New Trier concerned? Based on the February 18th New Trier school board meeting, we’d have to say “no,” though perhaps they should be. They did not mention the EO or the guidance letter. “Equity” was mentioned once in passing by a public commenter and again in reference to a past position of a new hire.
At past board meetings Superintendent Paul Sally has said “equity” is central to education – “K-12 work” “just like English and Math.” “Culture, Climate and Equity” remains in New Trier’s strategic plan, including the expansion in professional development. Departments are still required to weave “equity” throughout their curriculum. Only three weeks ago, New Trier ran the toxic and abusive “Beyond Diversity” training, rooted squarely in critical race theory and designed to shame and blame teachers based on skin color. Last fall New Trier added affinity groups for teachers, in addition to the affinity groups created for students in 2023, where the only option for white kids was the ideologically titled “White Ally Group,” implying that white kids must assume the mantle of “ally” to make up for past sins of their race.
And New Trier announced Feb 18 the hire of Nashwa Mekky as Chief Human Relations Officer. Ms. Mekky came from Illinois Math and Science Academy (IMSA) where radical policies based on this report have led to an active Federal Civil Rights Complaint. Continuing down this path with hiring and programming places New Trier at risk of investigation, funding loss, and declining achievement.
New Trier also promoted Chimille Tillery to Assistant Superintendent for Curriculum and Instruction. Ms. Tillery previously served as New Trier’s director of curriculum and instruction, is a proponent of the above-mentioned “Beyond Diversity” training and also helped launch New Trier’s race-based affinity groups.
New Trier spends $33,000/pupil yet students' proficiencies lag (70% in math, 77% reading, and 78% in science). In 2024, New Trier ranked #3 behind Stevenson and Vernon Hills High Schools even though those schools spend less per pupil. New Trier would be better served dropping the DEI radicalism they incorporate into the school day and focusing on improving proficiency numbers.
We hope the New Trier administration and Board of Education, particularly the lawyers, recognize the potential illegality and loss of funding of these failed strategies. When “equity” is the priority, students are taught to define each other by skin color and other non-behavioral characteristics which undermines their mental health while bolstering a consultant industry that enriches adults and distracts from actual problem-solving (see below). Our children and community deserve better.
If you see programming or curricula at your school you think might violate the law, contact us at newtrierneighbors@gmail.com.
DEI is out – Empowerment is in
While DOGE is busy using algorithms to root out waste, fraud and abuse - including “Diversity, Equity and Inclusion” from schools and institutions – it is good to remember the voices who for decades have been sounding the alarm about the damage that the disempowering DEI narrative of grievance does to our society. Google Glenn Loury, Thomas Sowell, Shelby Steele, Carol Swain or Bob Woodson - just a few of these brave voices of reason.
Last year Bob Woodson, founder of a 40+ year old anti-poverty organization, The Woodson Center, wrote what might be the definitive word on DEI:
“My problem with DEI was never about its intentions but rather its impact. I have taken issue with many DEI efforts because they are dangerous, often fatal, distractions from the very real work that needs to be done in the most vulnerable communities in America. Mandatory racial-sensitivity trainings burn through participants’ goodwill and patience very quickly while doing nothing to reduce crime, violence, poverty, or other urgent problems.”
I.e., DEI distracts from problem-solving.
Our friend Pastor Corey Brooks of Woodlawn’s Project HOOD recently penned this op ed for the Wall Street Journal, outlining his vision for what could happen in Woodlawn if actual problem-solving occurred and opportunity was unleashed versus government programs and the hopeless narrative of grievance that stifle development and increase dependency.
Interested in stories from history that defy the DEI narrative and instead highlight achievement against the odds in the face of oppression? Check out these 5-minute new animated videos by the Woodson Center based on its Black History and Excellence series of supplemental history lessons.
These animated stories of Civil War hero, entrepreneur and statesman Robert Smalls, groundbreaking aviator Bessie Coleman and self-taught scientist, author and abolitionist Benjamin Banneker were designed to introduce grade schoolers to these stories from black history and debuted earlier this year.
The videos are based on stories from the Woodson Center’s Black History and Excellence K-12 lessons, which are available for free with registration and contain classroom-ready lesson materials on more than 25 topics. These lessons received a positive review from the Johns Hopkins Institute for Education Policy.
Introduced in 2020, the Black History and Excellence K-12 lessons have been downloaded more than 225,000 times across all 50 states by public and private school teachers, home schoolers, after school programs and even returning citizen programs.
Already viewed nearly 80,000+ times (and counting!), the animated stories of Robert Smalls, Bessie Coleman and Benjamin Banneker are off to a good start – with more to come soon!
Does your school know about these resources? Ask them! They are free with registration!
Reminder - sign up for our March 20th New Trier Neighbors Book Club!
Join us March 20 for the inaugural meeting of our NTN Book Club, discussing “The Hunter Gatherer’s Guide to the 21st Century” by evolutionary biologists Bret Weinstein and Heather Heying. Register here!
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