Posted on 10/27/2005 5:37:09 PM PDT by lexfreedom
School dispute persists after plea deal struck By Tania Ralli, Globe Correspondent | October 27, 2005 A plea agreement in Concord District Court last week has cleared the way for a trespassing charge to eventually be dropped in the case of a Lexington father who is embroiled in a divisive debate about what should be taught in Lexington schools. But the heart of David Parker's dispute with school officials has not disappeared. Parents and community members continue to examine what role schools should play in teaching children about sensitive social issues. Judge Robert McKenna accepted the deal last Thursday that Parker's lawyers and the Middlesex district attorney's office worked out in advance. Under that agreement, Parker will be under pretrial probation for a year, after which time the single count of trespassing will be dropped so long as he does not violate any laws. Parker is still not allowed on school property, where his son is now a first-grader at Estabrook Elementary School. Lexington school Superintendent Paul Ash said last week he would be willing to meet with Parker to discuss lifting the trespassing prohibition. In April, Parker refused to leave the elementary school during a meeting with school officials until they assured him he would be alerted before his son's class discussed families with same-sex partners. He and his wife, Tonia, had become concerned in January when their son came home with the picture book ''Who's in a Family?" which depicts two gay couples among a dozen other families. Parker and his wife referred all questions from the Globe to their attorney. But they wrote on their website, davidparkerfund.org, that it is their right and duty to teach their son about the ''boundaries of gender," and that they prefer their son not be exposed to conversations about ''gay-headed households."
(Excerpt) Read more at boston.com ...
''The issue is, who are the kids in our schools?" said Laura Tulley, spokeswoman for Lexington CARES, which stands for Community Action for Responsible Education and Safety. ''We have families with two moms in almost every school in our school system."
Her concern is the negative message sent to the children of same-sex parents if discussion of their families is shunned in the classroom.
It's an issue that hits close to home for Meg Soens. She and her partner are raising two sets of twins. The two youngest are students at Estabrook, and the older two, who are now in junior high, attended Estabrook until last summer.
At the courthouse last week, Soens said, ''We need to make sure that teachers can talk in ways that include all families." She likened the debate to the challenges biracial couples endured in recent decades. Soens said she and her family moved to Lexington for its tradition of being inclusive and the schools' excellent reputations.
Parker's lawyer, Jeffrey Denner, said his client also chose Lexington for the high quality of its schools. Asked if the Parkers considered leaving on account of their dispute over the diversity program, Denner said, ''They moved here for the school system, so it seems a little incongruous that they be forced to leave because the school does not adhere to state law."
The Parkers wrote on their website that they do not think the Lexington schools are following a Massachusetts law that allows parents to pull their children out of classes dealing with ''human sexual education or human sexual issues."
According to the Massachusetts Department of Education, the law pertains to sexual education classes offered to middle and high school students.
Irwin Blumer, a professor of education at Boston College, said the law does not pertain to the Parkers' case.
Lexington school officials said the diversity education class for kindergartners was not intended to be a sex education class, but one promoting understanding. By showing students a breadth of family structures, they said, children learn that no two families are alike.
''The world is made up of many different people," said Blumer. ''You're teaching kids respect for human differences."
Blumer, a former superintendent of the Newton and Concord public schools, said teaching tolerance is a cornerstone of public education.
Gerry Wambolt, a spokesman for the Lexington-based organization Parents for Respect, said the Parker debate is about family values. ''Family values are taught by families. They're not taught by paid officials," he said. Wambolt supports secular education in schools, limited to mathematics, reading, and writing.
Some parents, like Robert Bennett, agree that diversity education goes too far.
''I don't want the schools determining the values taught to my kids," said the father of eight children, six of whom still attend Lexington schools. Bennett turned up at the courthouse last week to support Parker, whom he views as a role model. Bennett said young children do not have the capacity to understand homosexuality. He said he wants his children to learn their belief system at home.
''Values, expectations, goals -- I have a right to instill those in my children," he said. Bennett prefers that school officials don't teach his children about morality. He said he plans to meet with the school superintendent, Ash, in early November to discuss the path of his children's education.
For his part, Ash said he is happy to meet with all members of the community. ''This community is very committed to creating a warm and inclusive environment for all families," he said in a phone interview. Ash plans to propose a meeting with Parker to discuss lifting his ban from school property, put in place by Ash's predecessor after authorities arrested Parker for trespassing.
''What I need to know is that he'll follow the law and won't do anything that will disrupt the educational process," Ash said.
Denner, Parker's lawyer, said they had not yet heard from Ash but would welcome a meeting. ''There is no good reason for the no-trespass order to be in place," he said.
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FREEPERS! Support David Parker ! Visit:
David Parker Ping
The school ought to be sued for endangering the welfare of a minor.
I agree that the school should be sued for trying to teach perversion to children. Children need a safe place.
This is in Lexington, MA? Where the battle for freedom from England began? Samuel Adams must surely be rolling in his grave....
Folks, this is what it's all about. Here's the deal, mandatory homosexual ideology indoctrination for your children or find an alternative, home school, private etc..
Lots of people just give up and say "home school" Well, some folks just cannot afford to quit their job and home school their children much less pay for private school. Single parent children have no choice.
If you want on/off the ping list let me and little jeremiah know.
We always have choices - this single mom works from home - no child support at this point - my daughter isn't old enough for school work, but I'm staying home with her. We cut back on a lot of things that I've never in my life cut back on, but she's the most precious gift I've ever been given - her safety, well being, and education is something I take seriously. I think she'll thrive in our home environment. I wouldn't risk her being exposed to a public school for anything.
We hear about other single parents like you and we applaud you. We homeschool as well and struggle financially, but we will never, ever, put our children in a public school. We will sell our home and move out of the state if that's what it takes to continue homeschooling our children.
Having been faced with that situation, I can honestly say that downsizing to be home with the kids was well worth it.
Amen to both of you.
Enroll the boy in another school, preferably private.
This is crazy. They should ban all those idiot thinkers from the school grounds.
I salute Mr. Parker and his family for taking action where their child is concerned. They are a FAMILY. Oops, dirty word there,so I will say it again and again and again.
FAMILY, FAMILY, FAMILY. God save the FAMILY.
Honestly....how can you afford NOT to?
Speaking from my personal experience as a single parent child (parents divorced, my father was an abusive alcoholic and my mother sisters and I were subjected to domestic violence) my mother juggled the bills to keep food on the table, sometimes it was impossible. The state said she didn't qualify for assistance because she worked and wouldn't file for child support from my father, he never tried to file for custody and she was afraid for him to find out where we were.
Some days, If it wasn't for free lunch at school there would be no meals. That wasn't a regular thing but sometimes it would be that way for a week or so.
Anyway, why should we surrender this nations educational system to the radicals? What they're foisting onto society has no business in the schools primarily.
from the article
>>Parker, his son is now a first-grader at Estabrook Elementary School,refused to leave the elementary school during a meeting with school officials until they assured him he would be alerted before his son's class discussed families with same-sex partners. He and his wife, Tonia, had become concerned in January when their son came home with the picture book ''Who's in a Family?" which depicts two gay couples among a dozen other families. Parker and his wife referred all questions from the Globe to their attorney. But they wrote on their website, davidparkerfund.org, that it is their right and duty to teach their son about the ''boundaries of gender," and that they prefer their son not be exposed to conversations about ''gay-headed households."<<
from 1 posted on 10/27/2005 5:37:10 PM PDT by lexfreedom
>>Blumer, a former superintendent of the Newton and Concord public schools, said teaching tolerance is a cornerstone of public education.<<
This is what I was talking about in the FReep mail.
why should we surrender this nations educational system to the radicals?
That's a good question. What I think will help you better understand government schools is to read John Taylor Gatto's The Underground History of American Education. It's a real eye opener.
You can read it online if you want, just click the "Read the Book" link. I'd give you a direct link but I wanted to make sure you read the above linked page first.
Basically, what Gatto says is government schools provide a slaves education. If you want more than that you need to send your kids to a private school or homeschool. Our kids are getting an education you can't get anywhere. It's a custom tailored classical education for each kid.
Gatto doesn't think the current school system can be salvaged, and he knows. Check out Gatto - who he is and from where he's coming. About the only comparison I can give you is Gatto is like Spitzer is to homosexual issues.
Thanks, I'll look into it. It is a very interesting subject.
They should have felony charges filed against them by the US attorney.
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