l-r Sen. Michael McKell, R-Spanish Fork speaks with Sen. John Johnson, R-Ogden, during Senate floor time at the Legislative Session, Jan. 25, 2022.from Sen. John Johnson, R-Ogden, gives parents blanket legal standing “obtain judicial and other legal relief,” to exercise their rights as a parent.
Johnson’s bill is stuffed with language to make it crystal clear that parents are the ultimate authority when it comes to the education of their children. Parents have the “primary authority and responsibility for the education” of their children, and the only job of state and local government is to “support and assist” rather than “interfere or conflict with” parents. The Legislature, school boards and public schools are given the mission to “respect” and “protect” the interest of parents.
One group Johnson excluded from discussions on the proposal was the Utah Education Association, the state’s largest teacher’s union. The first time they saw the bill was when it was made public this week.
The GOP continues to outdo themselves in achieving new levels of crazy. In fact, they win all the Olympic gold medals for crazy. UTGOPChair UtahGOP
Many parents in Utah who would like to sue the boards of education and the principals for endangering their children by not having mandatory masks and vaccinations in K through 12 classrooms. Such a bill is a double-edged sword that may backfire on the legislators.
I'm so close to having my teaching degree. 1 year away in fact. And things like this have me considering not finishing. WTH Utah?
Sounds like good business for the UT attorneys. This will waste valuable tax dollars that could go towards schools for positive improvements. Nice job making UT a more litigious state. educationisimportant teachersmatter valuescomefromeducation
This is just one of the reasons I stopped trying to get my bachelors of education. Why would I want to put myself in that situation? Seriously.
This is going to backfire spectacularly.
Anarchy here we come.
Yeah go ahead. Only let schools teach about how great our pioneers were and white power. But let’s not teach them about black history and systematic racism because some Karen’s don’t like it.
And we wonder why there is a teacher shortage…..
This is so stupid and ambiguous!
Sure to take needed money from education. A grievance board would be better.
This is an extremely stupid bill. Utah is the worst state in the union for education.
What would really make more sense in today's environment is a law that would allow schools to hold parents accountable for not doing their jobs as parents. The problems in schools are home-based, not the other way around.
Does this mean I can sue my kid's school and teachers for NOT teaching comprehensive sex education in schools? Because as a parent, I feel it's my right that my children get the best education they can, which includes comprehensive sex ed.
Also known as the Teacher Early Retirement Act
This is getting out of hand when political actors fail to legislate real bills to help fellow Americans. Now, there are creating a wedge between parents and teachers . This is unexceptable. I am sending my kids to Europe for schooling.
Utah parents had better either plan to pay through the nose for Private School or Home School and lose money as 1 parent will have to stay at home to teach.. a law such as this will drive Teachers out..
You're always welcome to home school...as if teachers don't already have it hard enough.
Jesus H Christ and all that is holy. And y’all thought the liberals were over emotional snowflakes? This state is a joke, the country is a joke, and the whole world laughs at us. But because our school system is 💩 we’re to düm to realize jt.
Yeah, sue the school. Your kids are barely getting any education right now
If this goes through the same applies to cops, right?
They are fine with the bill until a parent sues over the demand to have schools teach sex education and history related to race.
Former teacher and a parent here. What are you doing utleg?! This is ridiculous!
43rd in the country in teacher pay and now this? Pretty soon the schools will be mostly substitutes because teachers will refuse to teach there!
When will there be a Bill when we can sue the State Legislature!
This is so wrong! Isn’t this what communism is? Only one stream of information of what they want you to learn? This allows more racism, less sex education, less understanding for all mankind. Let’s usher in a whole new age of ignorance with our children. Not!
more proof that the Republicans have no use for public education. and are willing to ruin the experience for everyone else just to make that point.
Please look up Know Nothing Party. The parallel with the current conservative movement is frightening.
I certainly hope Cox plans on approving thousands more days off for State employees to sub. He's gonna need them. StandWithTeachers
Good
Does this mean that I could sue any teacher that mentions beliefs, or activities involving the predominant religion in my county?
A great plan if your goal is that no teachers will want to work in Utah again.
This is planned sabotage, they know it will create impossible circumstances for teachers and schools.
Several years ago I had a mom come in my fourth grade classroom to get her son. She was going to homeschool him because I was reading a book about witches. The book was The Witches by Roald Dahl, loved by the kids. With this bill, she’d be suing me! utpol nocommonsense
this deserves nothing less than a massive teacher walkout in the entire state.
Time to bot the reporting system to failure
While y'all are arguing about what teachers can and can't do, teachers will be walking out the door.
Who decides what the “perceived infringement” is and if there actually was one? This is scary crap people!
My one concern is whether this bill will chill other potential teachers from teaching, leading to a shortage and/or more unqualified teachers.
Why are we so sue happy?
The fight against education and educators reminds me of very dark times... Luckily there are many more very rational and science-loving citizens and legislators in Utah. We thank them for their support! utleg
Start the lawsuits about religion in any form whatsoever in schools.
Snowflakes.
I saw it pointed out earlier this could also be if the Teacher refuses to use the preferred pronouns of the child. That idea will kill this bill.
Time to quit.
“We want home school but you do it!” -Utah parents
MittRomney you should worry more about what is going on closer to home.
This is disgraceful
Tell the parents to send them to private school. CRT isn't being taught. Go back to pretending you are involved with the kids.
I see the legislation is up to no good. Imagine if they actually worked to get us out of the bottom in the rankings in education.
Unfuckingbelievable even for Utah
danmccay ..”no”
As a teacher in Utah, I will be quitting the day anything resembling this passes. I love my students and give them my best. But these would be literally impossible conditions to work under.
PSA - Teacher appreciation week begins Monday, May 6. This year, more than ever, Utah public school teachers need to be reminded that they are appreciated, trusted and respected. (You don’t need to wait until May.)
Utah teachers need to strike, this is ridiculous
I wish they'd be more transparent about why they want to destroy public education. As someone who does a little school teaching, I don't plan to play nice at all
As government should be sued in every circumstance where they infringe on rights
There go all the teachers.
This insane war on education makes me terrified for when my children are old enough to attend school.
Does this include private schools as well? This is only going to clog up the courts with frivolous lawsuits. If parents don’t like their kids learning about something they are free to take their kids of that school and homeschool them. Easy peasy.
And they wonder why teachers are finding new profession’s. Good teacher are already underpaid and overworked, so now we can sue them for any perceived infringement of their rights as a parent. Maybe they should educate their children at home.
I gotta leave this place. Holy air, people, and rules. Wow.
Oh ffs. Why doesn’t Utah just close public schools and hope for the best because no teacher or administrator should be under threat by the whims and particulars of every single parent out there. So good luck kids cuz schools pointless.
Utah is the new Alabama. Next week republicans demand inclusion of the Confederate flag on the State flag. What an embarrassment
Our state legislature is embarrassing.
UEA should just wildcat French style at this point. Bloody hell.
Don’t worry. This won’t affect rich people’s children who will get a real education in private school. Serfdom
Who gets to pay for the schools' defense?
So now someone needs to invent educators’ malpractice insurance. Geez these legislative dopes. How don’t they see how ridiculous they are? This session is a
Thank god my youngest is a senior and we can leave the Utah education shit show behind. utpol
This is so demoralizing. As a parent and school employee, I am constantly amazed and grateful by all that I see teachers do. How do we communicate to the legislators that it’s not okay to keep doing this?
The law appears to be silent on the idea of students writing essays of their own volition about uncomfortable subjects, or of asking questions of their teachers about same.
Just abolish public education while you’re at it you peons utahsenate
The well minded progressive family lawyer can retire if they do it right. This is going to backfire so hard. It's too bad some good teachers will end up in the demolition.
This bill assumes there are no flawed parents. Which is already an incorrect assumption. Trash the bill.
So can a parent sue the seminary teacher if they aren't happy with the way they read a scripture? Asking for a friend.
And this is how you worsen an already strenuous teacher shortage
Isn’t there a South Park episode about this?
I would suggest parents home school since they seem to know whats best and are equipped.
They want to be oligarchs.
I bet Johnson’s children attend a charter school or he owns one. People should sue Johnson for his insane bill.
ACLU acluutah, desperate teacher and concerned citizen here? Any thoughts on how to survive this, while simultaneously protecting our own rights as teachers and the rights of our students to a free and appropriate public education?
The war on… education?
Roughly 26% of students in the state school systems are minorities. Now I wonder, what are those parents thinking. 🤔 We know minority are routinely underserved in education.
Can a teacher be sued by an atheist for saying the Pledge of Allegiance in class now?
I think they are just trying to get a reaction out of Democrats. This is all to head-off the qualified immunity debate for police officers.
Say a parent feels strongly that CRT should be taught... and that it infringes their rights to have it not taught in schools. Would this law allow them to sue the school/teacher every day it is not taught? Cascade of lawsuits... they understand this right?
Wonderful.
What a great way to find more teachers.
Let's just call this years legislative session: 'Attack on Utah's Teachers.'
if you are a student and your major is “education” I am guessing you are about to change it….
Do these people seriously think this is a good idea?
Maybe the DoE should look into NOT funding states that burn books and pass these stupid laws..
FASCIST ALERT!
bannerite There are federal, state and district policies that protect the rights of parents/students. At some point, we have to ask why the need for redundancy? Republican-led states are creating frivolous bills, using civilians to circumvent and undermine established educational rights.
The bill should also allow teachers to sue parents who infringe on the rest of the class by not requiring their kid attend school, do the homework, show up late repeatedly, etc
I guess the state of Utah doesn't want anyone to teach unless they are Repub Magas. My daughter and son were going to both be teachers and they would have been great at it but seeing what the legislature has done, they are going to change their courses
Would teachers who are already underpaid have to spend thousands of dollars out of pocket on a defense lawyer? Or will school boards fund the defense? This bill is terrible. Could a parent sue a coach whose isn't playing his kid? Could a parent sue a teacher for giving a kid a C?
Parents already have a “right” to waste money on lawsuits, so demonizing educators further is an unethical waste of time and resources
Bills like this are exactly why I am no longer pursuing a career in elementary education. Plus the pay.
Absurd the lengths GOP will go to destroy public education.
Will we be able to sue for trying to ostracize my kids for not going to seminary during the school day?
But not sue charter schools cause they are owned by state legislators and their families/big donors.
Gosh it’s gotta be so hard to be a teacher in Utah. You get paid peanuts and your constantly under siege from parents/government
Like Darwin’s theory and the Big Bang as a fact.
Withdraw this bill immediately!
Holy Hell! Then put your damn kids in private schools. Don’t punish some of the best people in our community. Just stupid.
Our legislators are such clowns. How in the world do these people get elected to office? People in UT need to get out and vote these idiots out of office.
These idiots don’t seem to be able to see beyond the 3 inches in front of their face. I can think of dozens of ways this could be weaponized against right-wing desires.
What about teachers rights?
Good luck finding teachers. What a joke.
We're 10 years away from another panic about tort reform. Enabling parents to sue schools now in a moral panic about inclusivity will not be brought up as a cause.
This is just surreally stupid. Do Utahns realize they are legislating away public education in total?
“Sorry, I can’t lesson plan. I got to talk to my lawyer about the three different lawsuits I got going on.” - future Utah teachers
'Do you like being underpaid and overworked? Do you like being screamed at by parents for trying to teach their kids? Want to be sued by those same parents? Then teaching is for you!' Way to go John Johnson, your parents thought long and hard about that name, eh?
Gee, I wonder why there's a teacher shortage 🤔
This is happening across many Republican states. They have started a war on Democracy. PAY ATTN.
The Ut Leg. again showing they know nothing about education. Do you know how to get students to succeed in school? Well, rule 1 is to not pit the parents against the educators at every single fucking turn. That's how you destroy student success. Why do legislators hate teachers?
This bill is nearly identical to bills in Oklahoma and other red states with poor public educational outcomes. It was drafted by a national organization that probably funnels dark money to Utah legislators.
Why has the GOP declared war on the educators in this country? The utleg is following the same tactics as other GOP controlled states. Need to work with educators as a partner and not an adversarial. The GOP is promoting an adversarial relationship that will damage education
Yes please. Sue the schools for not teaching actual history of slavery and incarceration in this country. Sue for not teaching how corrupt companies and real estate ‘developers’ destroy for personal gain. Sue for not teaching the full extent fossil fuel climate chaos. Sue for 1/!
Yes, good idea!! Let’s make education litigious … such a good idea 🙄 Howsabout we sue legislators when it’s clear they have campaigned under false pretenses … claiming to be educated, when they are in fact numpty eejits.
Our country is too sue happy-what happened to dialogue? Make an appointment and talk to your teachers. Why always assume ill intentions. Teachers are in it for the students-definitely not for the money 🤗
They won't be satisfied until they've eliminated public education altogether.
Why would anyone want to teach in this environment?
These useless education bills need to stop! How do we stop this one?
I love living in this Insane Bizzaro World. /s
What on earth is their fear? Seriously, teachers are good people trying to do their job. I swear if I was a teacher I’d feel under attack right now by Utah legislators
Uh, where is the money going to come from to fight all of these idiotic claims in court?
Why will anyone ever go into the education profession? This country is just going to become more and more uneducated.
Really hoping every minority family that has experienced racism in Utah schools and hasn't had their concerns taken seriously takes advantage of this.
Let’s make it easier for the religious zealots and puritanical sideshows to gain media attention all while bankrupting our school system. Great job fellas how bout next we tax the churches billions dollar businesses downtown you know the ones ran for profit. The entire downtown !
When will these schmucks stop copying and pasting bills from national GOP to prove their exact obedience? So disgusting how they have demonized teachers
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