The ruling came about nine months after the American Academy of Pediatrics and other groups filed a lawsuit against longtime vaccine skeptic, Health and Human Services Secretary Robert Kennedy Jr.,  and the department he leads, which includes the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.  In it, the plaintiffs argued that Kennedy Jr.鈥檚 advisory committee appointments 鈥� and the panel鈥檚 subsequent votes to roll back childhood vaccine recommendations 鈥� were unlawful.

David Hill, a pediatrician who has been practicing for over 30 years, serves as a spokesperson for the AAP. He recently told 蜜桃影视 that while he and his colleagues are 鈥渧ery happy鈥� with this latest development, 鈥渨e’re also all still holding our breaths.鈥�

鈥淭his is one moment in a lengthy process,鈥� he added. 鈥淚t is an encouraging moment, but I don’t think any of us are under the impression that this is over yet.鈥�

Most of Hill鈥檚 work centers around hospitalized children and newborn care, which means he is often the first pediatrician a family meets and the one parents talk to about vaccinating their kids. He recently started practicing in Seattle after spending years working in North Carolina, where he served a widely diverse group of patients.

The families he works with, he said, have 鈥渧astly different socioeconomic backgrounds and value systems and understandings of health,鈥� which has given him a unique perspective into on-the-ground impacts of shifting vaccine policies.

While not new to public discourse, vaccine skepticism has significantly swelled and gained greater footing since Kennedy Jr. took the helm of the nation鈥檚 health care system last February. Following his appointment, he swiftly fired all 17 members of the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, also known as ACIP, replacing them with hastily hand-picked advisors who largely shared his views on vaccines. 

The committee has since voted to overturn a recommendation that all newborns receive the hepatitis B vaccine; change policies surrounding the measles, mumps, rubella and varicella (chickenpox) combination vaccine; and roll back recommendations around 2025鈥檚 COVID- 19 booster. Then, this January, officials announced a plan to overhaul the U.S. childhood vaccine schedule, significantly reducing the number of shots routinely recommended for all kids 鈥� all amid already falling vaccine rates, measles outbreaks and The AAP and other groups were also cut off from their long-standing liaison roles. 

It was in response to all of these decisions that the AAP, a trusted source of information for pediatricians and families for nearly a century, began boycotting ACIP meetings, released a competing vaccination schedule, filed their lawsuit and effectively severed ties with the committee.

March鈥檚 preliminary injunction halts the changes to the pediatric immunization schedule, and stays Kennedy Jr. ‘s 13 appointments to the committee, essentially rendering it unable to meet. All votes made by the now-stayed ACIP appointments are also overturned 鈥� at least temporarily. 

When asked to comment, HHS spokesperson Andrew Nixon said this week that the department looked forward to the judge’s decision being overturned, but would not say whether it had filed an appeal.

蜜桃影视鈥檚 Amanda Geduld recently spoke with Hill about his organization鈥檚 lawsuit and how childhood vaccine sentiments have shifted over the past three decades. The impacts he鈥檚 seen in his own practice are particularly illuminating.

This interview has been edited for length and clarity. 

What is the most common question that parents ask you about vaccinating their newborns? Is there one vaccine they’re particularly concerned about?

I have the most experience in my current role with the first hepatitis B vaccine, but I think it is a fantastic model for the questions that we get about other vaccines. For example, I recently admitted a child at the hospital with an infection and breathing difficulty at age 2 who had not yet been vaccinated against Haemophilus influenza B (Hib) and pneumococcal pneumonia. 

And we had to think about this child very differently, because these are complications of viral illnesses that used to be absolutely horrendous 鈥� with meningitis, aggressive pneumonia, severe ear infections, infections of the bone around the ear or behind the ear. And really, because of the effectiveness of the vaccines against these illnesses, we have been lulled into not worrying about them very much anymore. And so we had to make sure that the team was aware that this was a possibility 鈥� these complications with this baby. 

But most often I’m talking about hepatitis B, and usually I’m the one who begins with the questions, and I say, 鈥淗ey, I noticed that your child has not had the hepatitis B vaccine we usually give. Do you mind sharing with me your thoughts about that?鈥�

How have those conversations shifted, if at all, over the past three decades that you鈥檝e been practicing medicine?

Well, they used to be vanishingly rare. And not a 鈥渘ever鈥� event, but a rare enough event that if it occurred, it was remarkable. It might be the first thing I would tell my wife when I came home that evening, or something I would comment to my colleagues about when I went into the office. 鈥淵ou’ll never believe this, but we had a patient turn down [the] hepatitis B vaccine today.鈥�

And that is because there was a widely shared understanding that this was an important intervention to keep children healthy for the rest of their lives, and that it was an extraordinarily low-risk intervention with a very high degree of reward. 

And it wasn’t a never event. It’s always been there, but it was remarkable. It was unusual, and the script has flipped to the extent now that when I’m first reviewing a newborn’s chart before I go into the room, I actually breathe a sigh of relief when I see that they have gotten their vaccine, because a really significant proportion of my patients 鈥� especially just in the last five or six months 鈥� have decided that they are going to delay it or maybe not get it at all.

How much of that do you attribute to this current administration and to Robert F. Kennedy Jr.鈥檚 leadership of HHS?

I think that there’s a very apropos chicken-and-egg question here. The wellness industry has put an enormous amount of money and effort into undermining confidence in traditional medicine, and that, of course, allows them to expand their market. It’s a market which is extraordinarily profitable. 

But if patients have trust in traditional medicine, then they’re less likely to purchase those products or to go to those providers. So there has been a decades-long effort 鈥� in terms of marketing, in terms of influence 鈥� that has been well funded and extraordinarily successful. 

It certainly did not start with the election of Donald J. Trump, either the first time or the second time. It definitely was accelerated by the success of a number of proponents of these efforts to achieve power within the United States government, to achieve federal power. 

And as much as people distrust the government, they really do listen to what the government says. So when the message coming from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention or from the Department of Health and Human Services, are messages undermining confidence in traditional medicine 鈥� whether we like it or not 鈥� that really does have a bearing on the decisions that people make.

Last July, the AAP sued HHS and Kennedy Jr. over vaccine policies. Then, in March, a judge issued a stay, which essentially means that a lot of the votes that ACIP made are overturned 鈥� at least for now. One of those involves the Hep B vaccine birth dose. Can you talk a little bit about the initial decision that was made by ACIP to delay that birth dose, and how you saw that impacting patients on the ground?

I think the really good news for those of us in public health and those of us striving for child health is that the initial decisions made by the ACIP 鈥� the ones that were recently stayed by the court 鈥� had not yet come to affect what vaccines were available to children. And so the stay has also not changed that, because payers were still paying for the vaccines, suppliers were still supplying them, manufacturers were still making them, hospitals and offices were still stocking them. 

So I think it’s very good news that we had not yet seen our worst case scenario of some of these vaccines becoming unavailable or unaffordable. We, on the ground, are very happy to see a court agreeing with our professional opinion that there was no scientific basis for making these changes, and yet I think we’re also all still holding our breaths, because this is not done. There will be appeals. This is one moment in a lengthy process. It is an encouraging moment, but I don’t think any of us are under the impression that this is over yet.

You mentioned that the judge鈥檚 ruling luckily came before some of the worst case scenarios were able to play out. But are you aware of any pediatricians on the ground who had started shifting any of their practices based on ACIP votes?

I am not. I am quite involved in the American Academy of Pediatrics, and listen to a lot of lines of communication. And I think we were all trained to follow the best evidence. And the American Academy of Pediatrics, and scores of other medical organizations, endorsed an evidence-based vaccine schedule that was very similar to the prior vaccine schedule, and that is, as far as I know, what all of my colleagues were referring to.

If the judge had not issued this preliminary injunction, do you think providers on the ground ultimately would have shifted their practices to match the new ACIP guidelines? Or would they have stuck to the evidence-based practices regardless?

You know, I have great confidence that my colleagues would have continued to follow the evidence wherever it leads. I think the fear would have been that some other barriers to following that evidence might have arisen 鈥� in terms of reimbursement, manufacturing, liability 鈥� that would have made it more difficult for us to do what we know is right for children.

I would imagine that the majority of parents across the country are not keeping super close tabs on this lawsuit or tuning into ACIP meetings, but they are reading the headlines, and they’re seeing these rulings go back and forth and practices being implemented and then rolled back. I’m wondering what impact that back-and-forth messaging is having on parents. Is that leading to confusion?

Oh, I know that it is leading to massive confusion. When you look at a marketing campaign, as this has been, people don’t have to be convinced that a message like this is correct, they just have to have some doubt. And so the fact that these conflicting announcements or decisions are sowing doubt is really enough to dramatically change the landscape that we are looking at at this point in terms of communicating with parents, in terms of following the best practices for public health and in terms of protecting children.

So what is your big takeaway of the judge鈥檚 latest ruling then? What impact will this stay have for parents and providers on the ground?

I think the most important shift that I’ve seen 鈥� and as a professional medical communicator, it is a shift that I welcome 鈥� is that pediatricians and health care providers as a whole, and scientists and public health officials are coming to terms with a new understanding of how critical our communication is. And it is across the board revolutionizing the way that we communicate, both individually and in public.

Can you talk a little bit about how that communication is revolutionizing, specifically when you鈥檙e talking to patients and parents of patients?

Yeah, absolutely. My dad is still a practicing pediatrician at age 84, and throughout his career he could count on the fact that he was the doctor being enough for most people. He walks in the room in a white coat with years of experience and an absolutely spectacular education at the best institutions the country has to offer, and has a wall of diplomas behind him, and people will be like, 鈥淥K, you know a thing.鈥� It’s just like when I walk onto my airplane and I see the pilot with all the gold bars on his epaulet. I’m like, 鈥淥h, this guy probably knows how to fly an airplane. I’m going to take my seat.鈥�

The relationship between doctors and patients and doctors and the public has changed in a way that I don’t think is going to change back. No matter what happens, we can’t just sit down in the chair and say, 鈥淗ey, I’m the doctor. Here’s what you need to do. Trust me, I studied, I know some stuff.鈥� Patients are really demanding 鈥� and appropriately so 鈥� that we show first that we care and that we can listen and that their value system, their understanding, their goals for their child’s health are the most important thing in that room 鈥� that we are servants who can bring our knowledge to bear to further this family’s goals for their child. 鈥� 

My mentor for many years, Dr. Tom Blackstone in Wilmington, North Carolina, used to sit me down early in my career and say, 鈥淒avey, they don’t care how much you know until they know how much you care.鈥� And those are the very wise words of someone who’s been doing this for a long time, and I think those are words we all have to live by.

I love that 鈥� that鈥檚 a beautiful sentiment. Well you talked about how there have been shifts in medicine you don鈥檛 necessarily foresee going back. I鈥檓 going to ask you to look into a crystal ball here, if you will, and tell me if you foresee this moment as a shift in policy moving forward. 

In other words, might this be a time the administration moves away from the attacks on vaccine policy and perhaps more towards other elements of the MAHA movement, like nutrition? Or is this stay merely a brief pause before the vaccine battle continues?

I would tend more toward the brief pause, and I would be thrilled if MAHA acted aggressively on some of their (other) priorities. There is more common ground between the stated priorities of the MAHA movement and the priorities of pediatricians. We would love to see kids get more fresh, healthy food in their diets. We would love to see aggressive measures taken to reduce pollutants in the water, in the air, in farming practices. We would love to see efforts toward increasing family activity and generating safe green spaces for exercise and play really put at the forefront of policy.聽

I think, in a very sincere way, there are a ton of common goals that pediatricians and the MAHA movement share. I am disappointed that on many of these fronts, it appears that this administration is actually taking steps backwards rather than forwards. Taking steps to allow greater degrees of pollution that we know harm children; taking steps to allow greater use of chemicals in farming; taking steps to decrease the availability of fresh, healthy food in schools, for example. 

And people have done this 鈥� there are forums where pediatricians and MAHA advocates sit down and find that they agree on a lot. So I think we would love to see any of those priorities move to the forefront of the movement. 鈥� The attack on vaccines, unfortunately, is very much an attack on public health, and so I think we are still waiting to see what the next steps are going to be before we relax.

The AAP has always been a highly trusted organization and leading authority on children’s health, but I would imagine that role has been pretty seriously magnified over the past year or so with this shift in leadership. Can you talk a little bit about what that feels like from inside the organization and how that’s impacted some of your public-facing actions?

Past administrations have certainly cooperated in more concert with the American Academy of Pediatrics, regardless of whether the leadership was Republican or Democratic. We are a nonpartisan organization, and we have enjoyed close working relationships with pretty much every administration. I believe it is unprecedented since we began working with the ACIP to terminate that relationship. So that certainly would appear to be a flash point. 

However, as a pediatrician of a certain age, I also recall that this is very much in continuity with the American Academy of Pediatrics taking positions in favor of child health that were at times quite unpopular with the public. We were out there early talking about tobacco-free spaces and tobacco-free homes. Those of us who are old enough to remember when people smoked in restaurants and airports and pretty much anywhere they wanted to also recall that there was a tremendous backlash on that. 

When the American Academy of Pediatrics came out in favor of taking lead out of gasoline and paint that was dramatically unpopular. The fuel industry and the paint industry, the builders, really protested quite loudly against that. Even car seats, bike helmets, things that we all take for granted as public safety measures 鈥� like who would not have their baby in a car seat right now? 鈥� were incredibly controversial when they began, and the American Academy of Pediatrics always stood up for child health and safety first and understood that if children’s health was benefited, eventually the public would understand. 鈥�

So to some extent, we are just following in the footsteps of those who came before us, and I certainly hope that when I’m not working anymore, there will be another generation to continue in that path, because it’s the right path.

Is there anything I haven’t asked about 鈥� having to do with this current administration and vaccine policy 鈥� that you think is important for readers to understand, given the news of the past couple of weeks?

I think first of all, that the public is wise enough to see where these attacks on vaccines could lead, and to make good decisions regarding child health moving forward. I don’t think we’re going to be having the same conversation in 10 years, or even five years, because as we see measles sweep through certain states, we’re also seeing people in those states recognize what a danger it is. And part of what we’re seeing is parents asking if they can have their babies vaccinated against measles at six months of age, which they can, it just doesn’t keep them from needing the next two vaccines. 

I think that the public is really very intelligent, and that people are already waking up to what these changes mean for public health, and I think for the most part, they don’t like it. One truism that I’ve witnessed as a pediatrician throughout my career is that parents love their children. They want the best for their children. Everybody holds their baby, imagining what that little being is going to turn into, how they’re going to grow, what they’re going to accomplish, and knowing that, I know that societally, we are going to ultimately make good choices, because that’s what it means to love our children.

Six individuals joined the suit, filed by the nation鈥檚 second-largest teacher’s union, alongside a coalition of labor unions representing over 2 million workers. Those impacted include teachers, who relied on federal student loans to pay for their college tuition, and high school students, who recently filed their federal financial aid forms with the department.

鈥淲hen I filled out the FAFSA, I gave my Social Security number and my parent鈥檚 income information as well as their investment information,鈥� Maryland high school student Sara Porcari said at an AFT Wednesday. 鈥淚 thought that information would be private and secure. Now I’m not sure what’s happening.鈥�

鈥淚’m only 17 years old,鈥� she continued, 鈥渁nd I don’t know who has access to my personal information or how this data breach will affect my future in college and in general.鈥�

AFT President Randi Weingarten questioned why Musk, a billionaire given free rein by the president to remake the federal government, and DOGE want access to that information, expressing doubts about their stated purpose of improving government efficiency. 

 An AFT press release Tuesday called for 鈥淓lon Musk and his minions to be immediately evicted from the U.S. Department of Education,鈥� alleging they were feeding the data from millions of people鈥檚 private student loan accounts 鈥渋nto artificial intelligence in one of the biggest data hacks in U.S. history.鈥�

Ernesh Stewart, a Washington, D.C., school counselor and mom, echoed those concerns Wednesday, 鈥淲hy do you need to access my daughter’s scholarship information? Why do you even need my home address? I can’t help but wonder if there is a hidden agenda. If one of the country’s wealthiest men, who also happens to be deeply invested in AI, has access to all this information, whatever it is, I feel like it’s a gross violation of privacy.鈥�

The Education Department, which oversees the private information of 43 million student borrowers who hold $1.6 trillion in student debt, did not immediately respond to a request for comment. A DOGE representative did not immediately respond to an email requesting comment.

Weingarten and other panelists at the conference expressed their hope that President Donald Trump鈥檚 nominee for education secretary, Linda McMahon, would join them in condemning this 鈥渄ata breach,鈥� during her Thursday confirmation hearing.

鈥淚 would hope that what she would do is protect students and protect families from this kind of financial intrusion and invasion and 鈥� say to the millions of people that have been affected the steps she’s taking to stop it,鈥� Weingarten said.

While the lawsuit contends government agencies have valid purposes for maintaining these record systems, the makes clear they can only provide access to them in very specific situations. Here, though, the filing argues, DOGE representatives have accessed the data to shut down payments 鈥渁nd in the case of the Education Department, the agency itself.鈥�

After gaining access to the systems last week, Musk, who is not an elected official, turned to X, the social media platform he owns, to boast that the Department of Education no longer exists. 

What is this 鈥淒epartment of Education鈥� you keep talking about?

I just checked and it doesn鈥檛 exist.

鈥� Elon Musk (@elonmusk)

In another DOGE-led effort, the Trump administration moved Monday to gut the Institute of Education Sciences, temporarily disabling an essential source of data on a host of basic information, ranging from high school graduation rates to school safety. 

DOGE was created by a Trump executive order in January. Supporters argue Musk is working to cut federal bloat and streamline systems. But critics say Musk, whose companies, including SpaceX, receive billions in government contracts, lacks transparency and has immense conflicts of interest.  

The suit, filed Monday in U.S. District Court in Maryland, also alleges that the U.S. Department of Education, along with the Office of Personnel Management and the Department of Treasury, has exposed millions of Americans to 鈥渢he risk of identity theft, harassment, intimidation, and embarrassment鈥� by improperly disclosing their sensitive records to DOGE employees who lack appropriate security clearances. The staff includes a 19-year-old who has previously leaked proprietary information, according to the suit.

WIRED magazine broke the story earlier this month that at the center of DOGE’s effort to take over various federal departments and agencies are six male engineers, with ties to Musk.

In particular, plaintiffs claim that the Department of Education and its acting head, Denise Carter, have released data from the National Student Loan Data System, a financial aid-related database housed within the Education Department that contains information on almost 34 million borrowers and their families. It includes a plethora of sensitive information, including Social Security numbers, bank records, home addresses and immigration status. 

About 20 people with DOGE have begun working inside the education department, looking to cut According to reporting from some of these representatives have fed sensitive and personally identifiable data from across the department into artificial intelligence software to look into the agency鈥檚 programs and spending.

Plaintiffs are asking the court to end the data disclosure immediately by restoring Privacy Act protections and are demanding that any data currently in DOGE鈥檚 possession be deleted and destroyed. The act, put in place in the wake of the Watergate scandal, regulates the circumstances in which agency records about individuals can be shared; disclosing anything beyond this is illegal.聽

On Tuesday, a federal judge in a against the Education Department blocked Musk’s team from accessing several systems that store sensitive data including student loans, but only temporarily. In a hearing for that case, Musk said he did not see how DOGE鈥檚 access to student loan data caused harm.

While it has previously been reported that DOGE representatives are political appointees, it now appears that some have received official government credentials, including email addresses, at multiple agencies, including at the Department of Education, leading to confusion about who actually employs them.

A cohort of book publishers and award-winning authors have filed a legal challenge to the 2023 Florida law that enables challenges to books in school libraries.

The lawsuit, filed in U.S. District Court in Orlando, alleges that the process of removing books from school libraries spelled out in  is overbroad and has caused a chilling effect.

The action names members of the Florida Board of Education and Orange and Volusia County school board members as defendants.

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HB 1069 has enabled parents to seek removal of materials from schools if school boards deem them to be pornographic or contain sexual content, in line with Gov. Ron DeSantis鈥� 鈥減arental rights鈥� agenda.

The publishers and authors are asking the court to deem the state鈥檚 interpretation of 鈥減ornographic鈥� and content that 鈥渄escribes sexual conduct鈥� unconstitutional.

鈥淭he State has mandated that school districts impose a regime of strict censorship in school libraries,鈥� the plaintiffs argued in a 93-page complaint. 鈥淗B 1069 requires school districts to remove library books without regard to their literary, artistic, political, scientific, or educational value when taken as a whole.鈥�

The plaintiffs are Penguin Random House, Hachette Book Group, HarperCollins Publishers, Macmillan Publishing Group, Simon & Schuster, Sourcebooks, and the Authors Guild, plus authors Julia Alvarez, John Green, Laurie Halse Anderson, Jodi Picoult, and Angie Thomas.

Two parents joined the suit, one from Orange and the other from Volusia, arguing for their children to be able to check out books that have been removed by challenges permitted by the law.

They argue the law does not specify a level or amount of detail to determine if a book 鈥渄escribes sexual conduct.鈥�

Overbroad

The law has created a chilling effect, the plaintiffs argue.

鈥淭he term 鈥榙escribes sexual conduct鈥� is so broad that it would require removal of the Oxford English Dictionary 鈥� which defines 鈥榮ex鈥� as 鈥榩hysical activity between two people in which the touch each other鈥檚 sexual organs, and which may include sexual intercourse鈥� 鈥� from school libraries. The Oxford English Dictionary, however, is not obscene,鈥� the lawsuit reads.

鈥淭his vagueness and ambiguity result in overbroad interpretations of [the law鈥檚] prohibition on content that describes sexual conduct and chill protected speech.鈥�

In an email response to the Phoenix, Department of Education communications director Sydney Booker said the lawsuit is a 鈥渟tunt.鈥�

鈥淭here are no banned books in Florida. Sexually explicit material and instruction are not suitable for schools,鈥� she said.

The publishers call for the state government to keep hands off, even in school libraries.

鈥淎uthors have the right to communicate their ideas to students without undue interference from the government,鈥� the plaintiffs wrote. 鈥淪tudents have a corresponding right to receive those ideas. Publishers and educators connect authors to students. If the State of Florida dislikes an author鈥檚 idea, it can offer a competing message. It cannot suppress the disfavored message.鈥�

鈥楴ot remotely obscene鈥�

The plaintiffs argue that they do not wish to prevent schools from ensuring school libraries do not have obscene materials. Instead, their problem is with removing books deemed to be 鈥減ornographic that are not remotely obscene resulting from the Florida State Board of Education鈥檚 unconstitutional construction of the term 鈥榩ornographic.’鈥�

The plaintiffs list several books they believe should not have been deemed inappropriate by school boards, including Alvarez鈥檚 鈥淗ow the Garc铆a Girls Lost Their Accents,鈥� Green鈥檚 鈥淟ooking for Alaska,鈥� Anderson鈥檚 鈥淪peak,鈥� Picoult鈥檚 鈥淣ineteen Minutes鈥� and 鈥淐hange of Heart,鈥� and Thomas鈥檚 鈥淐oncrete Rose鈥� and 鈥淭he Hate U Give.鈥�

鈥淎s publishers dedicated to protecting freedom of expression and the right to read, the rise in book bans across the country continues to demand our collective action,鈥� the publishers said in a .

鈥淔ighting unconstitutional legislation in Florida and across the country is an urgent priority. We are unwavering in our support for educators, librarians, students, authors, readers 鈥� everyone deserves access to books and stories that show different perspectives and viewpoints.鈥�

The publishers have also taken over a similar law and challenged the constitutionality book removals in .

is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Florida Phoenix maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Michael Moline for questions: info@floridaphoenix.com. Follow Florida Phoenix on and .

Partnership for Educational Choice, a group that 鈥渄efends educational choice nationwide,鈥� filed a motion this week asking to join the defense of challenging the constitutionality of a new school voucher program.

Four guardians of public school students filed the earlier this month in the Pulaski County Circuit Court. The plaintiffs asked a judge to block enforcement of the Education Freedom Account Program created by the . The complaint alleges that using funds intended for public schools elsewhere violates a Constitutional provision.

The complaint also contends, 鈥淚f implemented, the LEARNS Act will drain valuable and necessary resources from the public school system and create a separate and unequal school system that discriminates between children based on economic, racial and physical characteristics and capabilities.鈥�

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Current defendants include Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders, Education Secretary Jacob Oliva, the Arkansas State Board of Education and Department of Finance and Administration Secretary Jim Hudson.

Partnership for Educational Choice is described as 鈥渁 joint project of the  and .鈥� Both of the listed organizations are nonprofits with a history of defending school voucher programs like the one Sanders championed in 2023.

If the from Partnership for Educational Choice is approved, attorneys would represent three Arkansas mothers who currently use 鈥� or intend to use 鈥� the voucher program, according to a press release. Those mothers are Erika Lara of Little Rock, Katie Parrish of Paragould and Nikita Glendenning of Van Buren.

鈥淏efore I received my Education Freedom Account, my son was being bullied and struggling academically, but now I have the resources to put him into a school where he鈥檚 thriving,鈥� Lara said in a press release. 鈥淭aking away this program would put my son鈥檚 academic and social progress in jeopardy.鈥�

More than 5,400 Arkansas students participated in the first year of the program, which is being phased in over three years. Participation will be capped at about 14,000 students for the 2024-2025 school year. Around $6,600 in state funding was available to each student last year. That will increase to nearly $6,900 this year.

Lawmakers $97.5 million for the state鈥檚 voucher program for the 2025 fiscal year. The program could cost upwards of in its third year when it鈥檚 available to all Arkansas students, the state finance department has estimated.

Among the reasons for intervention, the motion notes the mothers鈥� interest in the program is 鈥渋nextricably intertwined with their fundamental liberty interest in 鈥榙irecting the upbringing and education鈥� of their children.鈥�

Lara and Parrish each have one child that has switched schools using the Education Freedom Account Program. The motion notes that if the program is struck down, the women would be left in a difficult financial situation. Glendenning intends to use the program for two of her four children during the 2025-2026 school year.

鈥淒espite repeated court rulings that these types of programs are constitutional, opponents of educational choice continue to attack these programs,鈥� said Ed Choice Vice President and Director of Litigation Thomas M. Fisher in a press release. 鈥淲e look forward to defending this program and making clear that it is constitutional.鈥�

is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Arkansas Advocate maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Sonny Albarado for questions: info@arkansasadvocate.com. Follow Arkansas Advocate on and .

A group of Montana students, teachers, librarians, and organizations representing school counselors and psychologists filed a Tuesday seeking to block the 2021 law that requires school staff to if they plan to teach or discuss anything with students that involves 鈥渉uman sexuality.鈥�

The group asked a Lewis and Clark County District Court judge to permanently block the passed during and signed into law by Gov. Greg Gianforte, saying it violates multiple provisions of the state Constitution ensuring rights to freedom of speech and expression, privacy, due process, equal protection and a quality educational opportunity.

鈥淲ithout clear guidance on the issues that fall under the scope of SB 99, teachers, librarians, and others are at risk of discipline if they unknowingly violate this legislation,鈥� said Marthe VanSickle, an attorney at the ACLU of Montana, which is one of three law firms and organizations representing the plaintiffs. 鈥淪B 99 has left Montana schools navigating uncertainty and vulnerability which stifles learning opportunities for students and threatens free exchange of ideas.鈥�

In response, the Governor鈥檚 Office and Superintendent of Public Instruction Elsie Arntzen said they remain committed to the law and ensuring a parent鈥檚 right to know if their children are learning about explicit content at school.

鈥淲hile the governor鈥檚 office generally doesn鈥檛 comment on ongoing litigation, the governor remains committed to preserving a Montana parent鈥檚 role in his or her child鈥檚 education, especially a parent鈥檚 right to know when a child might be exposed to sexually explicit content in the classroom,鈥� the governor鈥檚 spokesperson, Kaitlin Price, said in a statement.

The plaintiffs include the Montana School Counselors Association, Montana Association of School Psychologists, a Billings high school English teacher, a Billings West librarian and teacher, two students and EmpowerMT, an organization that provides training to several districts in the state about how to build more inclusive school communities.

They are suing Gianforte, Arntzen, her Office of Public Instruction, and the Montana Board of Public Education, alleging vagueness is creating abundant issues for educators, the Two Spirit and LGBTQ+ community, and mental health professionals that work with students because the law is being 鈥渨eaponized鈥� to shut down discussions and lessons that some parents might morally object to.

鈥淪B 99 is part of a concerted effort by the Legislature and the Defendants to erase 2S-LGBTQIA+ histories, viewpoints and curricula from public instruction,鈥� the lawsuit says. 鈥淚t is also part of a coordinated effort to create a climate of hostility towards 2S-LGBTQIA+ individuals. In short, SB 99 marginalizes the history, concerns, experiences, and aspirations of the 2S-LGBTQIA+ community.鈥�

The group says the law has led to teachers, librarians, counselors and psychologists avoiding discussing gender identity, sexual health, and even legal decisions in lessons that are not planned in advance so they don鈥檛 risk potential punishment for violating the law. They say nearly three years on, they have received about exactly when they should be notifying parents two days in advance of any lesson or discussion.

The lawsuit says Two Spirit and LGBTQ+ students are also unable to learn more about those communities and that the law also subjects them to being further singled out because of their identities and subject to bullying. It says that students cannot engage in spontaneous conversations in school groups like a Genders and Sexuality Alliance without first notifying parents.

And it says the law is violating the constitutional requirement for quality educational opportunities for Montana students because the restrictions surrounding sex education are not informing students of healthy practices and are paring down their opportunities to learn as much as they wish.

The suit calls the law 鈥渁stonishingly vague鈥� and says the challenge comes in part because the Montana Legislature failed to refine definitions in the bill of what constituted 鈥減roviding information鈥� or 鈥渕aintaining a curriculum鈥� during the 2023 legislative session. Two bills that of the law both died in the process.

And it says that the discussion over the bill signaled a legislative intent to enforce 鈥淐hristian values鈥� in Montana鈥檚 public schools that would violate the state Constitution.

The educators say they have had to stop teaching certain books and topics, that classroom libraries have been shut down, that they鈥檝e had to question whether their mental health discussions with students violate the law and have faced harassment from the community for trying to teach about LGBTQ+ history and rights.

鈥淪B99 gives anti-2S-LGBTQIA+ parents a potent cudgel against any teacher, counselor, school psychologist, or librarian who is dedicated to tolerance, inclusivity, and compassion in the classroom and school,鈥� the suit says. 鈥淎s a result, teachers, counselors, and school psychologists are likely to continue to steer clear or any instruction or counseling that might put them in the crosshairs of SB 99 and its proponents, to the detriment of public-school students across the State.鈥�

For the two student plaintiffs, the suit says the law is preventing Two Spirit and LGBTQ+ students from accessing information about the community and scientific material on sexuality and gender identity. And it is keeping student peer educators from speaking with other students to better inform them about sexual health and relationships, the lawsuit says.

鈥淓very student has a right to access information about human sexuality without censorship from their teachers and without fear they are running afoul of SB 99,鈥� the suit says. 鈥淎s a result of the hostile climate SB 99 has created, R.S. and her peers will go out into the world as adults without the quality education to which they are entitled under the Montana Constitution.鈥�

It contends that school psychologists and counselors have also had to change their practices surrounding what they can say to students, even involving serious matters like suicidality, which goes against best practices for their professions.

鈥淢any of those conversation are, by necessity, confidential,鈥� Montana School Counselors Association Advocacy Chairperson Erica Parrish said in a statement. 鈥淪B 99 places school counselors between the proverbial rock and a hard place: we can either follow our professional and ethical obligations to our students, or we can follow SB 99鈥檚 parent notification requirement. It鈥檚 impossible to do both.鈥�

The lawsuit claims the law violates the Montana Constitution by chilling speech, infringing on the privacy rights of students and educators, and not giving the plaintiffs due process because of its vagueness. It says the law violates the equal protection clause because it disproportionately affects Two Spirit and LGBTQ+ students, and does not afford Two Spirit and LGBTQ+ students the chance to receive a quality education.

The attorneys in the case are asking a judge to find the law to be unconstitutional, to award nominal damages to the student plaintiffs, as well as attorneys鈥� fees and costs.

In a statement, Arntzen, who is running in the Republican primary for Montana鈥檚 2nd Congressional District seat, said the lawsuit was an attack on her because she鈥檚 a Republican who supports more parental involvement in Montana classroom curriculum.

鈥淲oke organizations are once again attacking me because I am a conservative and I鈥檓 standing for parental rights,鈥� she said. 鈥淕overnment bureaucracy doesn鈥檛 own our children. I stand with Montana parents who are rightfully concerned over sexual indoctrination in the classroom. Montana families have the right to know what their children are being taught and the right to opt-out of participating. I will continue to fiercely defend parental rights.鈥�

is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Daily Montanan maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Darrell Ehrlick for questions: info@dailymontanan.com. Follow Daily Montanan on and .

A spate of policies banning books and tamping down teachings on race and gender proliferated nationwide in 2021 and 2022 鈥� but are those rules actually legal? The American Civil Liberties Union has launched a multi-state effort to find out by challenging them in court.

The approach includes a mixture of lawsuits, public records requests and legal letters alleging the right-wing rules violate the First Amendment and other constitutional protections.

In Mississippi, a letter from the organization helped reverse a mayor鈥檚 decision to withhold $110,000 in funding from a local library until librarians removed LGBTQ literature. In Virginia, the ACLU urged a state court to dismiss a ban on the sale and distribution of the books and 鈥� which it did. And in Florida, a lawsuit litigated by the organization seeks to throw out provisions of the state鈥檚 鈥�Stop W.O.K.E.鈥� law that infringe on college and university instructors’ long-established academic freedoms.

鈥淭hese laws have absolutely no relationship to any legitimate pedagogical interest and, in fact, are purely partisan political tools,鈥� said Emerson Sykes, ACLU staff attorney. 鈥淲e focus on challenging these laws in court.鈥�

To date, legislation limiting classroom discussion of race and gender has been proposed in 42 states and adopted in 17, according to an . Many outlaw 鈥渄ivisive鈥� topics and lessons that cause students to 鈥溾�嬧�媐eel discomfort, guilt, anguish鈥� on account of their race or gender. Some explicitly ban the teaching of critical race theory, a graduate-level scholarly framework examining how racism is embedded in American institutions. The term has become a catch-all many Republicans use to describe teachings about systemic racism.

Right-wing, mostly white parent groups such as and have pushed for the bills, which have been supported almost exclusively by conservative politicians. Those who favor the restrictions broadly argue that classroom teachings about race can serve to divide students and give them a pessimistic view of the country鈥檚 history. They contend LGBTQ material can make students vulnerable to sexual predation, though those claims , and should be under the purview of parents, not schools.

Simultaneous moves to ban books have also spread in response to parent activism. With more than in schools and libraries from January through August, 2022 is on track to surpass 2021鈥檚 count, which was already 鈥渢he highest number of attempted book bans since we began compiling these lists 20 years ago,鈥� ALA President Patricia Wong said in an April .

So far, the ACLU has challenged classroom censorship efforts in 10 states, including three lawsuits against rules limiting teachings on race and gender. In its more than 100 years of operation, the organization鈥檚 have extended across all political ideologies, including defending the rights of the KKK and Nazis to express their views peacefully. 

The number of challenges to anti-CRT laws could soon increase, said Sykes,

鈥淲e are actively tracking and considering litigation in multiple states at the moment.鈥�

Here鈥檚 a nationwide look at what has played out so far:

Oklahoma

In October 2021, the ACLU and affiliate organizations filed a lawsuit, BERT v. O鈥機onnor, challenging a statewide bill that restricts public school instruction on race and gender. As a result of the law鈥檚 approval, according to the ACLU, school districts in the state have told teachers to avoid using terms such as 鈥渄iversity鈥� and 鈥渨hite privilege鈥� in their classrooms, and have removed , and other seminal books from reading lists.

The court鈥檚 decision will have ramifications for Tulsa, the state鈥檚 second-largest school district, which received a in its accreditation status after the State Board of Education found an implicit bias training it administered was in violation of the state anti-CRT law. The city, which was the site of the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre that left hundreds of Black residents dead and over 1,250 homes destroyed, had recently doubled down on teaching the dreadful, long-buried episode. The demotion does not prevent teachers from covering that history, but some fear may lead teachers and school leaders to feel as if they are on thin ice.

New Hampshire

New Hampshire is among the 17 states that have passed laws restricting lessons on race and gender. The ACLU鈥檚 lawsuit, Mejia v. Edelblut, alleges that the Granite State鈥檚 legislation is so vague that it violates the 14th Amendment, because teachers鈥� innocent misunderstandings can place their jobs in jeopardy. The state chapter of the National Education Association, one of the plaintiffs, said teachers repeatedly voiced they were confused about what they could and could not teach, and were scared of the repercussions for guessing wrong. Letters to the state asking for clarification, the ACLU says, went unanswered.

Florida

Gov. Ron DeSantis signed Florida鈥檚 Stop W.O.K.E. Act in April, tamping down on teachers鈥� and employers鈥� ability to hold discussions related to race and gender. 鈥淲e will not let the far-left woke agenda take over our schools and workplaces,鈥� DeSantis said.

But the law has already run into legal difficulties. In August, a federal judge placed an injunction on the provisions that apply to the workplace. Now, a group of seven professors and one undergraduate student, represented by the ACLU, have also challenged the law鈥檚 restrictions on colleges and universities.

鈥淭here is a longstanding history in the Supreme Court and courts across our country of recognizing the freedom of professors, lecturers and educators in higher education to determine what to teach and how to teach it,鈥� said Leah Watson, senior staff attorney with the American Civil Liberties Union鈥檚 Racial Justice Program.

Tennessee

In February, after the McMinn County Board of Education decided to remove the graphic novel from the eighth-grade curriculum, the ACLU of Tennessee calling for the board to share the parent complaints it received over the book.

Virginia

After Virginia initiated proceedings to block the sale and distribution of two books, Gender Queer and A Court of Mist and Fury, the ACLU and ACLU of Virginia filed a alongside several independent bookstores urging a state court to dismiss the obscenity proceedings against the two works. On Aug. 30, the court followed that recommendation and dismissed the attempted ban.

鈥淭he First Amendment is clear 鈥� disliking the contents of a book doesn鈥檛 mean the government can ban it,鈥� the ACLU on Twitter.

Missouri

A Trump-appointed federal judge denied an ACLU motion for a preliminary injunction against the Wentzville School District鈥檚 book ban. The ACLU of Missouri originally filed a class action lawsuit on behalf of two Wentzville students after the school district pulled several books with Black, Hispanic, Asian and LGBTQ main characters from the shelves of its libraries. The lawsuit sought to temporarily halt the district鈥檚 book review policy. A trial on whether to permanently ban the district from enforcing that policy is .

Montana

The ACLU of Montana in February filed a public records request after officials in Kalispell, Montana held meetings over whether to ban by Jonathan Evison and Gender Queer by Maia Kobabe. The board dismissed the first potential ban and has delayed a decision regarding the second. 

Meanwhile, books were left in the Kalispell book drop in early August. Local police investigated and concluded that the books 鈥� none of them controversial titles 鈥� were mistakenly donated after being used for target practice, but the unnerving incident spurred the resignation of at least two librarians.

Nebraska

In late May, a Nebraska school district three days after the 54-year-old outlet published an LGBTQ-themed edition. The superintendent of Northwest Public Schools, in Grand Island, Nebraska, said the paper鈥檚 final issue was not the sole reason for its elimination. But school board Vice President Zach Mader was , saying, 鈥淚f (taxpayers) read that (issue), they would have been like, 鈥楬oly cow. What is going on at our school?鈥欌��

In response, the ACLU of Nebraska submitted a public records request for all documents and communication records related to the decision scrapping the publication. The district鈥檚 legal representatives have said they are currently . The ACLU also sent a letter to the superintendent warning that the move violated students鈥� constitutional rights and other federal protections.

鈥淭he District鈥檚 unlawful attempts to quash student journalism and student opinions violate students鈥� rights to freedom of speech and equal protection under the Nebraska and United States Constitutions,鈥� said the . 鈥淲e urge the District to immediately remedy these violations [by] reinstat[ing] both the school paper and the journalism program.鈥�

Mississippi

In January, Ridgeland Mayor Gene McGee withheld $110,000 from the town鈥檚 public library, giving librarians an ultimatum: get rid of LGBTQ literature or lose operational funds that had been slated for the building. The ACLU of Mississippi in February responded with a warning letter to McGee. 鈥淵ou have no authority to undertake such measures, and your actions are unconstitutional,鈥� staff attorney McKenna Raney-Gray wrote. Following the letter, the funding was delivered to Ridgeland Public Library.

Idaho

In May, the Nampa School District banned 22 books from libraries and classrooms, including by Khaled Hosseini, by Margaret Atwood and by Toni Morrison. Concerned over a potential First Amendment violation and the possibility of bias in the board members鈥� decision, the ACLU of Idaho in July filed a public records request for all communications related to the board鈥檚 adoption of the policy.

Late Thursday, Chief U.S. District Judge Mark Walker issued a preliminary injunction in a suit challenging the employer portion of Florida’s Stop W.O.K.E. Act, suspending enforcement of the law in the workplace. The Obama-nominated judge wrote in his Honeyfund v. DeSantis : 

“In the popular television series Stranger Things, the ‘upside down’ describes a parallel dimension containing a distorted version of our world. Recently, Florida has seemed like a First Amendment upside down. Normally, the First Amendment bars the state from burdening speech, while private actors may burden speech freely. But in Florida, the First Amendment apparently bars private actors from burdening speech, while the state may burden speech freely.”

A separate lawsuit filed Thursday morning challenges the portion of the law that applies to colleges and universities.

A federal lawsuit filed Thursday charges that a Florida law designed to 鈥渇ight back against woke indoctrination鈥� by limiting classroom discussions of race and gender violates the constitutional free speech rights of college students and professors.

Florida’s Stop Wrongs Against Our Kids and Employees (Stop W.O.K.E.) Act took effect July 1. It prohibits workplaces and schools from requiring training or instruction that may make some people feel they bear 鈥減ersonal responsibility鈥� for historic wrongdoings because of their race, gender or national origin.

But Jerry Edwards, staff attorney with the ACLU of Florida, one of the legal organizations behind the case, said the law unconstitutionally censors the free expression of higher education students and educators.

鈥淭he Stop W.O.K.E. Act is a shameful result of propaganda and fearmongering,鈥� he said in a statement. 鈥淎 free state does not seek to curtail the inalienable right to free expression in its college and university classrooms.鈥�

The Florida Department of Education did not respond to multiple requests for comment.

Florida is one of 17 states that have sought to restrict how educators cover topics related to race and gender, according to a . 

However, it鈥檚 the only state that applies its censorship law to higher education, said Leah Watson, senior staff attorney with the American Civil Liberties Union鈥檚 Racial Justice Program.

鈥淭here is a longstanding history in the Supreme Court and courts across our country of recognizing the freedom of professors, lecturers and educators in higher education to determine what to teach and how to teach it,鈥� she told 蜜桃影视. 

Seven Florida professors and one undergraduate are named as plaintiffs, represented by the national ACLU, ACLU of Florida, NAACP Legal Defense Fund and the law firm of Ballard Spahr. The suit names the state university system鈥檚 board of governors and several other officials as defendants. It requests an injunction seeking an immediate halt to enforcement of the bill in colleges and universities.

Plaintiff Russell Almond is an associate professor teaching statistics at Florida State University and covers how to use race as a variable in empirical research. Provisions in the Stop W.O.K.E. Act that prohibit educators from presenting 鈥渃olorblind鈥� ideologies as racist put his teachings in jeopardy, the lawsuit charges.

Another professor, Dana Thompson Dorsey, will teach a course in 鈥淐ritical Race Studies: Research, Policy and Praxis鈥� at the University of South Florida this school year. She fears that explaining how racism is embedded in American institutions 鈥� a central aspect of the scholarly framework 鈥� could put her in violation of the law. While the Sunshine State does not explicitly ban Critical Race Theory, Gov. Ron DeSantis鈥檚 office has said the law is intended to .

鈥淚n Florida, we will not let the far-left woke agenda take over our schools and workplaces. There is no place for indoctrination or discrimination in Florida,鈥� DeSantis said after he signed the bill into law in April.

The act forces many educators to present foundational principles of their disciplines in a 鈥渇alse light,鈥� presenting them as 鈥渄isputed when it鈥檚 honestly not,鈥� said Watson. 

Plaintiff Johana Dauphin, a senior at Florida State University, worries that she will be ill prepared for graduate school if the law interferes with her professors鈥� ability to convey key understandings that students in other states receive.

鈥淚 fear that this law will cause my professors to avoid discussing race and gender altogether, which will result in my perspective and lived experience as a Black, female student being effectively minimized and erased in the classroom,鈥� said Dauphin. 鈥淎s a student, I deserve to see myself and the issues that impact me 鈥� including issues around race and gender 鈥� reflected in my classroom discussions.鈥�

Thursday鈥檚 filing marks the third lawsuit the ACLU has brought against a statewide censorship law. Similar cases in Oklahoma and have yet to be decided.

A previous legal challenge seeking to prevent the Stop W.O.K.E. Act from taking effect was dismissed by a federal judge in June. Chief U.S. District Judge Mark Walker clarified in a 23-page order that he was not 鈥渄etermining whether the challenged regulations are constitutional, morally correct or good policy.鈥� Rather, the four plaintiffs 鈥� two professors, a student and a diversity, equity and inclusion consultant 鈥� .

Other lawsuits challenging the Florida law remain undecided. At an early August hearing, Walker appeared to arguments leveled against the state by several businesses, including a Ben & Jerry鈥檚 franchise. The federal judge emphasized the vagueness of a particular section that labels training discriminatory if it causes an employee to believe a person of 鈥渙ne race, color, sex, or national origin cannot and should not attempt to treat others without respect to race, color, sex or national origin.鈥�

鈥淎pparently, I鈥檓 a person of below-average intelligence, because I have no idea what that means,鈥� said Walker.

John Ohlendorf, an attorney representing the state, defended the provisions: 鈥淭he state of Florida has a compelling interest in preventing employers from forcing employees to listen to speech that suggests one race is inherently superior to another.鈥�

The case brought Thursday is 鈥渇ramed differently鈥� than prior challenges, Watson said. It has yet to be assigned, but it鈥檚 possible Walker could be the one to review it. Should that happen, the ACLU hopes for a speedy ruling, as he has moved in a matter of weeks on previous decisions around the bill. 

鈥淲e鈥檙e confident the Stop W.O.K.E. Act unconstitutionally infringes upon academic freedom and students鈥� right to learn,鈥� said Watson. 鈥淚’m not able to comment predicting what the court may say.鈥�

Corey Wise, in his claim, said his support for the district鈥檚 equity policy, minority and LGBTQ+ students and COVID mask mandates made him a target of four newly elected conservative board members who pushed him out in February.

His replacement, Erin Kane, former head of a 3,000-student local charter school network, was hired in March in a , with the backing of the same four members who ousted Wise.

It was not her first time in the position: Kane served as Douglas County鈥檚 interim superintendent between 2016 and 2018. She was not hired for the post because she did not meet qualifications: She lacked a master鈥檚 degree at the time and was not among the finalists, district officials told 蜜桃影视. 

Kane, who has lived in the county for more than two decades and raised her three children there, spent her first weeks in office meeting with school and community leaders, trying to build trust in a district that has been deeply divided over mask mandates and moves toward equity and inclusion 鈥� so-called “culture war” issues that are roiling school systems around the country.

鈥淚 recognize that our community is still facing conflict and division,鈥� she said in a statement on the district鈥檚 website. 鈥淗owever, as I listen carefully to what everyone is saying, I truly believe that we are much closer together than we think.”

The superintendent has turned her attention to securing funding for teacher raises 鈥� similar efforts have been underway for years 鈥� and bonds for new construction and building maintenance. Her wealthy, mostly white district, the third-largest in the state, serves some 64,000 students. 

Critics lament the speed at which Kane was chosen. Wise, in his complaint, alleges she was a predetermined pick, that she accidentally sent him a text message regarding the position before he was terminated and just minutes after two new board members urged him to resign.

The board鈥檚 conservative slate has 鈥渆xpressed no contrition or sorrow for ruining Mr. Wise鈥檚 career, dragging his reputation through the mud, or sacrificing his well being to the altar of their biased agendas,鈥� his complaint states.

Wise, whose base salary was $247,500, had worked for Douglas County schools in various capacities for 26 years. The district was obligated to pay him for 12 more months and gave him a lump sum in February. Kane was hired at $250,000 with her contract ending June 30, 2026. 

鈥淚n my first four weeks, I have met one-on-one with nearly 100 district and school leaders, visited 30 schools, spoken to hundreds of teachers and staff, and engaged with board committees and community groups,鈥� she wrote in an email to 蜜桃影视. 鈥淚 am very committed to community outreach around district funding and our challenges, including teacher pay and facilities. Taking care of the amazing teachers and staff who care for our children will always be a priority for me. I am confident that together, in partnership with our parents and community, we can maximize the opportunities we provide for our students鈥� futures.鈥�

None of the four board members who ousted Wise have returned numerous requests for interviews. Their decision led to a massive student walk-out and the day before their vote, 1,500 district employees staged a sickout. That prompted an attorney and father living in the district to ask that the names of all participating teachers be made public. The request was rescinded, but not before a local news agency asked the district to identify the person who made the query. That information was released last week: Michael P. Kane, a partner with Dan Caplis Law and who is not related to the new superintendent, was behind the request. Caplis is a prominent conservative radio host.

Wise and his supporters say the board met unlawfully and in secret to plot his ouster. Community member and attorney Robert Marshall , saying they discussed Wise鈥檚 employment outside a formal board session in violation of the state鈥檚 open meeting laws. 

The suit is making its way through district court: Judge Jeffrey K. Holmes, who March 9 to prevent the four board members from violating open meetings laws, said evidence indicates they 鈥渃ollectively committed, outside of public meetings, to the termination of Wise鈥檚 employment.鈥� 

The district鈥檚 motion for the lawsuit to be dismissed was . 

Marshall said the board has continued to operate unethically.

鈥淭he hiring of the new superintendent was a farce,鈥� he said. 鈥淪everal community members begged the new board members to simply tell everyone they wanted Erin Kane and hire her because that was what they were going to do anyway. Instead, they went through a charade of a search and said they would consider public comment.鈥�

Marshall said he and many other community members wanted another candidate, finalist Danny Winsor, who had worked in the district for years, from coach to teacher to administrator. 

Marshall said the board continues to keep the community on edge by calling numerous last-minute special sessions: They鈥檝e called eight so far in 2022, far more than average, according to board member David Ray. The majority have focused on the superintendent search process and job description. Others have been devoted to Marshall鈥檚 lawsuit. 

Ray, who opposed Wise鈥檚 firing and Kane鈥檚 hiring, laments the meetings, which have mostly been called by board President Mike Peterson.

鈥淚t circumvents our public being able to participate,鈥� Ray said. 鈥淲hen the public doesn鈥檛 get that notice in advance, they are at a disadvantage. Special meetings are not best practice and should only be used for things of an urgent nature. We challenged Peterson on a number of occasions about why they could not be pushed into regular board meeting agendas 鈥� but he was not willing to push out the timeline.鈥�

Some critics of the board majority say they are considering a recall, but none have started the process in earnest. Still, others say the board and the district are on a solid path.

鈥淚 am happy with the direction they are going,鈥� said parent Christa Gilstrap. 鈥淜ane is a fabulous choice. She can bring unity and calm things down in the district.鈥�

Gilstrap, a recruiter by profession, believes Kane is qualified even though she does not have a master鈥檚 degree in education as was initially required by the district. Instead, she has a master鈥檚 in public administration. 

Regardless of her academic credentials, Gilstrap said, Kane is a proven leader, having run her K-8 charter school, , for seven years.聽

鈥淲e need someone who has those skills,鈥� Gilstrap said. 鈥淗er reputation from her charter is untarnished: She had countless employees come and speak in her favor.鈥�

But long-time resident Julie Gooden, who has two children in the district, believes it is in chaos because of the newly elected board members. 

鈥淚 feel like Mike Peterson is campaigning and I鈥檇 like him to stop,鈥� Gooden said. 鈥淗e says things that are alarming. He vilifies teachers and our staff.鈥�

The animosity has spread to the greater community. Teachers union President Kevin DiPasquale said morale remains low weeks after teachers on three campuses found fliers on their cars admonishing them: 鈥淢ost Teachers Are Good and We Appreciate Them!鈥� it read. 鈥淵ou are Bad! Get Out and Leave!鈥�

DiPasquale said teachers worry the board is not focused on education but on addressing numerous lawsuits. And, he said, they remain uncertain about wage increases: Douglas County teachers and staff are the lowest paid among Colorado鈥檚 other large, metro area districts, such as Jefferson County and Littleton, the union head said.  

鈥淓rin is making an attempt to be visible,鈥� DiPasquale said of the new superintendent. 鈥淏ut there hasn鈥檛 been any work by the board or the school superintendent toward supporting public education.鈥�

Right now, he said, there are more than 600 open positions in his school district: The next closest district has 300, and it鈥檚 far bigger. 

Ray, who has served on the board for nearly seven years, said he鈥檚 had a positive working relationship with Kane in the past, but wishes she had stronger credentials.  

Critics charge, too, that Kane is aligned with right-wing groups and that she supports arming teachers, a point she clarified in an email to 蜜桃影视. She said she does not support arming staff within her district, except for school resource officers or official security personnel.

鈥淲e have great relationships with our law enforcement partners and they are only a few minutes away,鈥� she said, but, 鈥淚 also do not support taking that right away from schools or districts in different circumstances that may be far away from law enforcement and without SROs. Again, this is not the case in Douglas County.鈥�