FAIR News: Standing Up for Integrity in Teacher Credentialing
Newsletter
Dear Friends of FAIR,
On December 6, 2022, our legal team submitted a letter to the California Commission on Teacher Credentialing (CTC), raising concerns about a proposed regulation that would allow teacher candidates with Ethnic Studies degrees to automatically qualify to teach K-12 Social Studies, without passing the content mastery test.Â
Currently, California teachers are required to demonstrate an understanding of various topics, including world history, American history, California history, American democracy, economics, and geography, in order to teach K-12 Social Studies. But a student can complete an Ethnic Studies degree without coursework in any of those topics. If the proposed regulation had been adopted, California teachers would have been permitted to teach K-12 Social Studies even if they had no background or knowledge in any of the required topics.
In addition to requesting a hearing, FAIR urged the CTC Commissioners to study the proposal further and with transparency under California's open meetings laws. On December 9, 2022, the CTC voted unanimously to reconsider the proposal. We applaud the Commissioners for taking a thoughtful and measured approach.
Yours,
Bion
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Bion Bartning
bion@fairforall.org
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How to Improve Our Public Schools: Education Roundtable in Stamford, CT
Featuring Dana Stangel-Plowe, Joe Feldman, Tom R. Guskey, Bob King, Drew Denbaum. Hosted by FAIR in Education and the Prometheum Foundation.
FAIR Book Club: The Illusion of Division by Monica Harris
Start the new year off by joining FAIR's Book Club! We'll be reading Monica Harris’s newest publication,The Illusion of Division, and hosting conversations from 7:00pm - 8:30pm ET on January 25th and February 22nd.
FAIR’s Book Club meets monthly with a goal to read books that challenge and deepen our understanding of humanity and fairness, while enriching our sense of what it means to be pro-human. Join us!
Sanity - Restoring Science and Removing Politics from Medicine
On Tuesday, January 24th from 7:30 PM – 8:30 PM CST, learn about the launch of FAIR in Medicine in Minnesota. Featuring Director of FAIR in Medicine’s Dr. Carrie Mendoza!
HOW TO RUN FOR SCHOOL BOARD | JANUARY 30-FEBRUARY 2, 2023
You care about your kids and your community, we get it! So do we. Join FAIR in partnership with the Grassroots Leadership Academy for a 4-session, training experience to empower you to roll up your sleeves and run for school board (or effectively organize your community for someone you want to run for school board). This training experience is four, 90 minute sessions over four days, 6:00 p.m. - 7:30 p.m. ET each day. This training is great for those of you who want to run and your core supporters alike. Together you will learn:
Session 1 on January 30 – How to become the candidate and set yourself up for success
Session 2 on January 31 – How to communicate your why and connect with the whys of those in your district
Session 3 on February 1 – How to create a messaging plan and stay on message no matter what
Session 4 on February 2 – How to talk to voters and raise money
FAIR Summer Internship Program
Applications are now open for our full-time summer internship program for highly motivated and open-minded undergraduate students.
Ideal candidates value curiosity, compassion, and courage, have excellent communication and leadership skills, and show a passion for FAIR’s pro-human values and vision. This internship provides students with real-world experience in a nonpartisan, dynamic, and mission-driven organization, while also empowering students to become ambassadors for FAIR’s mission. See what Summer 2022 Interns have to say about their experience below.
The internship is fully remote, except for an in-person orientation during the first week of the internship. Over the course of the internship, interns attend weekly all-hands meetings and work with a specific team to assist with new and ongoing projects. As a cohort, interns attend lunch & learns and seminars with thought leaders who promote our pro-human mission. Interns are expected to return to campus with a plan for bringing FAIR’s mission and approach to their respective colleges and universities.
FAIR News Podcast
For audio versions of our FAIR News and FAIR Weekly Roundup newsletters, subscribe and listen to FAIR News Weekly on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, or via RSS feed.
Join the Pro-Human Movement With FAIR Merch!
FAIR Educators Alliance & Administrators Alliance Happy Hours
Teachers often feel isolated and alone in their schools, but FAIR is here for you! The FAIR Educators Alliance brings together educators from all levels to share experiences and concerns and work on developing resources that can support teachers, community members, and FAIR chapters.
FAIR’s Educator’s Alliance is hosting an informal happy hour every other Thursday evening, alternating between beginning at 7:00 p.m. and 8:00 p.m. ET, and will hold more formal monthly meetings that will address issues based on your interests and needs.
If you’re a K-12 school administrator, we’re here to support you too! You’re invited to join the FAIR Administrators Alliance, which holds meetings the last Thursday of every month at 1:00 p.m. ET!
All teachers and administrators are welcome! For more information and to subscribe to the calendar, reach out to educators@fairforall.org.
Calling all FAIR Member Librarians and Library Staff! FAIR has established a network for members to connect and discuss key issues affecting their profession, advance pro-human principles, and preserve academic freedoms in library systems. The group meets biweekly.
Please contact tanya.simons@fairforall.org if you are interested in joining!
Join the FAIR Community
Join Us, and Become a member of FAIR
Become a FAIR volunteer, or join a FAIR chapter
Sign-up for a Welcome to FAIR Zoom information session to learn more about our mission, or watch a previously recorded session in the Members section of www.fairforall.org.
Take the Pro-Human Pledge and help promote a common culture based on fairness, understanding, and humanity.
Share your reviews and incident reports on our FAIR Transparency website.
Learn more about the pro-human approach to DEI on our FAIR Diversity website.
Oh boy. It’s getting dumber and dumber. If they just changed the word ‘teacher’ to unbridled ‘activist’ it’d be honest at least.
Michael Mohr
‘Sincere American Writing’
https://michaelmohr.substack.com/
Thank you for this advocacy. It is so important. As a National Board Certified Social Studies Teacher I am appalled that the California Commission on Teacher Credentialing would even consider such a proposal. Thank you to FAIR for speaking truth and reason to power and for giving them pause to reconsider this bumbleheaded idea.