After discovering that Lockhart (TX) Independent School District was teaching woke, liberal Marxist ideology to children in the guise of “Healthy Relationships” this past April, I applied in May to be a member of SHAC, the School Health Advisory Council, which was created to review sex ed/health curriculum and make recommendations to School Board trustees.
I downloaded all the courses, went through each page. It was provided to LISD for free by Hays County Women’s Center in conjunction with the “Pride” community. Ah. No wonder it provoked children into rebellious behavior, creating unhealthy division between parent and child. I smelled the SEL (Social Emotional Learning) right away, the stench of Marxist Queer Theory curling my nose hairs with each module.
I searched out acceptable programs, spending hours of time emailing vendors and reviewing materials. I found four sex ed programs that are being taught nationwide to thousands of students that meet the requirements of the law, that teach truth and actually equip children for making wise health decisions, and that would not cause outrage in the community (except, of course, the liberals who think there are 322 genders might be offended).
I promised God and this community that the filth being passed off as “health curriculum” would not get past me, if I were accepted as a member of SHAC.
So at 5:15 Monday evening, I showed up at the Admin Building, notebook in hand, ready to go to work at 5:30. I had copies of the Scope and Sequence of the four programs (PATH Curriculum, Success Sequence, Esteem Journey, Relationships Under Construction) I had found, along with the “K-12 Standards for Optimal Sexual Development” published by the Medical Institute for Sexual Health.
Then the shocker. At the sign-in table, “Voetee” was not on the roster. Surely, a mistake had been made.
There was no mistake. Mrs. Weber, the Health Services Coordinator, said so. I was not a parent, she said.
The fact that I’m a grandparent of four LISD students and have one graduate from Lockhart High School did not count. Although it counted for one member who is also now employed by LISD; pigs are pigs of course, and we’re all equal but some are more equal than others. Haven’t we learned that farm lesson well by now?
With only 15 of 30 accepted members actually showing up (typical for SHAC meetings; I know, because I checked attendance records of previous meetings), there was no place for me at the table.
The advantage of a small town is that nothing much stays secret for long. I learned that Mrs. Weber had called a friend of mine who is a parent of an LISD student, desperately trying to fill the roster at the last minute. Sorry, Mrs. Voetee, there are only 30 spots and they are all taken. Nanner Nanner. Oh the games people play now….
Here are the rules that Mrs. Weber was supposed to play by: Section Eleven of the By-laws: Consideration for New Members
…have a positive attitude and work well with others
…known to possess certain subject matter expertise
…advocate for the interests of all children
…would help achieve membership diversity
…has previous district, campus, or community service
Well, let’s take a look at me.
- I’m a Doctor of Naturopathy and Counselor of Natural Health, and this is a “Health” committee.
- I’m a business owner: Once Upon a Time Bakery for organic, natural-color birthday cakes especially for children. Parents often arrange for their child to decorate their own cakes with their friends in my bakery kitchen.
- I’ve been a citizen of Lockhart for 17 years now. Ran for mayor in 2010.
- I’m the author of Supermarket Survival, which teaches parents how to avoid six categories of toxic foods, and which I taught at The Life Emporium here in Lockhart for three years.
- I was a presenter at the Texas PTA Convention for two years, with standing room only for my class, “Why Can’t My Child Behave?”
- I have written curriculum for homeschool groups and taught the best literacy program on God’s green earth to teachers at private school, homeschool, and public school. In fact, kids in the Long Beach United School District were doing so well with the program that the superintendent stopped it; they were losing too much money. One of the teachers who was using it successfully was so crushed that she had a nervous breakdown and had to quit teaching altogether. She learned a hard lesson: Mediocrity, not excellence, pays the bills.
- I volunteered to teach reading twice a week at Plum Creek Elementary using an innovative program, Point to Reading, when Supt. Estrada was principal there. The librarian asked if we could be there all day, every day. Kids simply could not read, she said. I would cry after many of my sessions, seeing how I knew we had the ability to equip children to be independent thinkers and grow into self-suffcient, productive adults, yet the system was keeping them from that birthright. What a shame. What a da** shame.
- I was a reading tutor for a child at Bluebonnet Elementary. When her scores went up, the teacher asked if I tutored math, too. No, sorry. Literacy is my super power; the phonograms are sabers of light in a dark world. If we don’t strive for literacy—100% literacy in all grades—there will be no liberty. Pol Pot, the Cambodian dictator, shot people who wore glasses because it inferred they could read, and literacy, more than anything else, makes Communists’ toes curl inside their jackboots. When kids graduate LHS with only 6% grade level mastery, have we not created the same results as that bloody monster?
- I had been a member of SHAC in 2008, but then the other members did not like me for advocating for a healthy lunch and for firing the corporate caterers who spent exactly $.64 on a school meal—the same price as prisoners’ lunches at GEO.
Check.
Check.
Check.
Check.
Check.
There might be one possible exception. I’m not sure what they mean by “positive attitude” and “works well with others”. If they were looking for a sycophantic rubber stamp and obsequious consensus at the cost of truth, then I definitely blew that one.
I thought maybe now, in 2023, 15 years after that sad day when the previous SHAC director came to my health store and told me I was uninvited to be a member, it would be different. It wasn’t.
I had brought a copy of the SHAC by-laws with me, because I’m a gal who still thinks that the Rule of Law is a good thing. What a shock to see that the bulk of the by-laws have been scrapped, substituting a template from Region 13, Austin. I’m really suspicious about anything “Austin” being brought into Lockhart, since AISD’s sex ed program is abominably controversial.
Before we leave the topic of Austin, there is one change that I was happy to see. Last year, there were two Austin school district employees on Lockhart ISD’s SHAC. What? Why? Article V, Membership, (C) states that “non-employee members must be residents of Caldwell County or work in Caldwell County.” Well and good, as it should be.
Hold that applause for a moment, because then we get to “Section Six: Code of Conduct.”
Members, by their comments and/or actions, shall not reflect poorly on the SHAC. Violation of this code of conduct may result in reprimand or dismissal by the Executive Committee.
Unfortunately, there is no definition for what constitutes “reflect poorly.” Good law is clear and exact. By their nebulous and fuzzy wording, this very essay could be construed as a “poor reflection on the SHAC” because it exposes the fact that last year’s SHAC members had actually given approval to curriculum that by its nature was seditious and subversive to the morals of families and ridiculously unscientific at the same time. Every single one of those members who voted for “Healthy Relationships” should have been ousted. It was an egregious violation of their duty to protect children’s innocence and their responsibility to supply accurate medical and scientific materials for their instruction.
And do you notice how “the SHAC” is concerned for its own reputation, and not that of the community it ostensibly serves? Let’s add narcissistic to the list of descriptors.
My advice to all you parents is to be very, very careful before signing any permission slip for your child to receive sex ed instruction. Better safe than sorry. We saw the Bait and Switch done last year. Parents were shocked when one student secretly filmed the teacher, then her father shared it on Facebook. The permission slip had said nothing remotely close to what was being taught. I know several families who removed their children and now homeschool due to this slick tactic.
Actually, the fact that your permission is required might be the first indicator of concern.
There is a law that you can examine any instructional materials. Make time to see them. What, exactly, are you looking for? How is someone supposed to know if the curriculum is bogus? Watch the video at New Discourses by James Lindsay, “The Dark Truth About Social Emotional Learning,” Episode 92. Watch it a few times. Yes, it’s long. Your child is worth it.
Then, even if materials appear wholesome, remember that a knife is just a tool and can have wide results depending on who’s wielding it—Chef Ramsey, or Jack the Ripper; thus, the curriculum is only as good as the character of the teacher who has full access to your child’s soul behind closed doors.
After this salvo, there is no chance that I will ever serve on any committee with LISD. I speak truth on behalf of those who cannot speak for themselves: children. What man intended for evil, to protect their good ol’ boys/girls club and silence any dissent, God intends for good—perhaps the removal of many children from public school. This warning never would have been written if I had been selected for SHAC.
I’ve sounded the alarm, and that is perhaps all I was supposed to do. The choice to consider that sex ed curriculum will be chosen by those whose own reputations matter more than your child’s innocence is yours. Make it count.
Pray for School Choice. Competition and the free market is still the American way. The educational industrial complex needs to remember that, and parents are the only ones who have the power to remind them.
This is a commentary published with the author’s permission. If you wish to submit a commentary to Texas Scorecard, please submit your article to submission@texasscorecard.com.
