“These bills are founded on an assumption of mistrust toward school boards and teachers. Parents already have a number of formal and informal ways of giving their input on curriculum decisions,” Stirling said. Those ways include school board meetings, electronic learning systems, and even direct contact. “Both these bills should be withdrawn, and instead we should focus on using the tools we have to address the real issues that our education system faces.”

These bills’ curriculum requirements are unnecessary, wasteful, and divisive. Educators have made it clear that they are not compatible with K-12 teaching methods. They drive a wedge between educators and their communities and don’t actually address issues that teachers and schools are facing. The UUP instead supports building communities in a collaborative way and focusing on identifying and addressing the real issues facing our education system. These bills are a distraction from substantive issues including teacher shortages, unmet mental health needs in our schools, and the need for greater education funding in the face of record inflation.

“The Utah way is to build our community collaboratively, and this isn’t the Utah way,” said Stirling. “Both these bills should be withdrawn so we can focus on helping our teachers and kids instead of picking political fights.”