This Friday, the Dem Club welcomes Katie Graupman. Katie is the Director of Curriculum for the Coeur d’Alene School District. She is joining us to clarify recent assertions by the Idaho Secretary of Education regarding Critical Race Theory (CRT) and Civics instruction in Idaho Schools.

In a recent CDA PRESS My Turn Article, Ms. Graupman expressed her opposition to Superintendent of Public Instruction Sherri Ybarra’s recent assertions that Idaho Schools teach CRT and lack a comprehensive Civics curriculum.

First, she pushed back on the idea that CRT is an element of instruction in our classrooms. In her article, she confirmed, “that CRT is not taught in Coeur d’Alene public schools, nor is it embedded in our curriculum, operating plans or staff training programs.”

She also contested Ybarra’s statement about our school district’s civics curriculum. According to Ybarra, Idaho schools offer students inadequate civics instruction. In Ybarra’s view, Idaho’s civics course load consists of a fourth-grade Idaho history class and a generic government class in high school. Ms. Graupman asserted that this belief does not reflect reality in the CDA School District. In her article, she stated that “… we intentionally build our students’ foundational knowledge in civics and American government to provide a comprehensive and robust education…from kindergarten through high school.”

Join Ms. Graupman this Friday for an overview of the CDA School District’s curriculum as it relates to recent comments by Secretary Shari Ybarra.

ABOUT OUR MEETINGS

The Democrat Club meets each Friday at noon online. We distribute a Zoom link for our club meetings each Thursday prior to the meeting date. Contact Phil at pjwmia@aol.com, to request the link or assistance connecting. We will return to in person/online meetings as soon as it becomes safe to do so. You can find videos of past Club meetings at KootenaiCountyDemClub.com/Meeting Videos.