Loudoun County Parents Must Sign Nondisclosure Agreement to View CRT Curriculum

Parents of Loudoun County public school students have been asked to sign a type of nondisclosure agreement (NDA) to view a curriculum connected to a group known to push critical race theory, the Washington Examiner reported.

America’s wealthiest county, Loudoun County, Virginia, has been mired in debate on teaching critical race theory in public schools, and a group of parents has been challenging the idea of teaching the controversial curriculum in the Loudoun County School District.

Parents who wish to review the "Second Step" curriculum must sign the NDA and acknowledge that the presentation of the material is "not a public event" and that "copying, broadcast or recording of any kind is prohibited."

The NDA document in Loudoun County is billed as the "terms and conditions" agreement, citing copyright as the reason for requiring the document. A Loudoun County parent told the Daily Caller that a number of other organizations, including the Southern Poverty Law Center, provide copyrighted material to Loudoun County Public Schools without requiring parents to sign a NDA, according to the Washington Examiner.

The "Second Step" curriculum comes from a series of lessons on "Social Emotional Learning" from the Committee for Children, a nonprofit group that provides free anti-racism and anti-bias resources.

The Second Step website includes material on anti-racism and anti-bias, stating it is "committed to addressing racial injustice and helping you drive real change in your school communities."

The website states its goal is to "implement social-emotional learning in a way that builds on students' cultural assets, critically examines systems of power, and develops better ways of teaching, learning, and being."

Critical race theory was popularized by Ibram X. Kendi, a professor at Boston University who wrote a book titled "How to Be an Antiracist." The theory has stirred controversy in the United States since the 1980s for critiquing color blindness, analyzing the U.S. Constitution and existing law as constructed according to and perpetuating racial power, and encouraging legal scholars to promote racial equity.

A group, named "Fight for Schools," said the school district and its Board of Education should be focused on fixing bigger issues than implementing Critical Race Theory concepts.

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