Indiana parents get portal to show ‘inappropriate’ policies, teachers in schools

Indiana Attorney General Todd Rokita created a website to allow parents to submit what they believe is inappropriate material in their children’s schools.

The Eyes on Education portal has already been populated with a gender support plan from one district and a pride flag featuring a Black Lives Matter symbol in a classroom in another district.

There are 13 K-12 public school districts and the Indiana University School of Medicine on the portal, with issues submitted ranging from critical race theory to a political quiz, sexual content in reading lists, gender support plans and minority scholarships.

“As I travel the state, I regularly hear from students, parents, and teachers about destructive curricula, policies, or programs in our schools,” Rokita said in a statement. “Our kids need to focus on fundamental educational building blocks, not ideology that divides kids from their parents and normal society.”

The first-term Republican, running for reelection this year, promises to follow up on materials from parents. He says the portal follows steps he’s already taken like establish a Parental Bill of Rights and stepping in to stop federal authorities from investigating parents deemed excessively vocal at school board meetings.

“We not only want to help empower parents,” Rokita said. “We also want to help empower excellent educators. In some cases, district bureaucrats suppress the conscientious efforts of caring and well-qualified teachers. Our portal is a place where educators, too, can submit examples of materials they find objectionable.”

The portal already includes a gender support plan from Clark-Pleasant Community School Corp., which Rokita says tells faculty not to disclose any information that reveals a student’s gender identity to anyone, including parents or guardians.

It also has a complaint about a pride flag featuring a Black Lives Matter symbol in a classroom in Kokomo. Rokita says Black Lives Matter is a political organization and other organizations should have the same opportunity to display material.

There is also a complaint about scholarships for students at Penn Harris Madison School Corp. to cover a $10 registration fee for a program at the University of Notre Dame. The registration form says “scholarship priority will be given to Black, Indigenous and all girls of color, including cis girls, trans youth, gender-nonconforming and/or nonbinary youth who experienced girlhood and economic insecurity as part of their journey.”