STURGIS, SD – South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem (R) announced that she has signed the “1776 Pledge to Save Our Schools” but has not given any directives to school districts, administrators and educators to do the same.
But if they don’t, she is clear about what she will do to replace them.
Meade School District 46-1 Superintendent Don Kirkegaard said it has not been an agenda item for the school board as yet.
“We have not discussed it yet but I’m not so sure that we won’t in the distant future,” he said. “We’re very much in favor of enhancing what we currently offer. The Meade School District, like most schools in South Dakota, can always do better and are looking to do better. But we’re not in a spot where we necessarily need to be saved.”
In a social media post Noem said, “Teaching our children and grandchildren to hate their own country and pitting then against one another on the basis of race or sex is shameful and must be stopped.”
Based on his own experiences as an educator and administrator, Kirkegaard said he is not aware of curriculum or educators who are teaching those things.
“I”ve been in education for 40 years in a variety of different schools in different locations. I don’t know of any school that is trying to indoctrinate the kids,” he said. “We try to provide education. We try to provide two sides of the story and let kids make informed decisions. Critical thinking is essential to quality education. I’m not aware of schools that are blatantly trying to indoctrinate students.”
The move by Noem comes as Republican legislators across the nation have either filed or advanced legislation that seeks to block teachings of critical race theory that examines social, cultural and legal issues as they releate to race and racism.
The pledge mirrors the “1776 Report” released by the White House in Trump’s last month in office. The 45-page report created by the 1776 Commission went after critical race theory. It was met with backlash from historians and civil rights groups upon its release on Martin Luther King Jr. Day.
In the Meade School District, Superintendent Kirkegaard feels that both a high standard of education and a balanced approach are in place.
“I am confident that our school board will do everything we can to provide quality opportunities for our kids and too provide an educational environment that is as politically free of partisanship as is possible,” says Kirkegaard. “We are teaching education, not indoctrinating kids. We aren’t teaching one side or the other but giving them information and encouraging critical thinking so they can make informed decisions.
“I know I speak for my colleagues,” he continued, “when I say we all want a better, stronger United States. We want a better, stronger South Dakota. We want our kids to be informed, to be good students and good citizens going forward. A well-educated public is critical to the success of any democracy.”
In signing the document, Governor Noem has pledged to help replace those who don’t support it and who promote a false, divisive, and radical view of America, including school board members, principals, university presidents and others.
Kirkegaard says there is already a mechanism in place that represents the will of the people – elections.
“We have officials elected by the public. And if the public gets to the point where they believe that public officials are no longer doing what they should be doing….that’s what the election process is all about,” says Kirkegaard. “It’s similar to those in hired positions. If they’re not meeting the needs of the district and constituents and most important of all the students in the district, then the school board has the authority to go in a different direction.”
He continued, “But I don’t know if you need an additional pledge for that to happen. Because that’s all part of our election process. We have a school board election in several weeks. There are six candidates running for three positions. And we have a school board election every year where three people are up for election. That’s truly what our democracy is all about.”
He added, “The opportunity to have a peaceful transition of power, whether it’s a school board, a president, a senator or governor – that is part of what we teach in social studies. We have those mechanisms in place right now.”
Listen to the interview with Superintendent Kirkegaard ON DEMAND
The 1776 Pledge to Save Our Schools for citizens and political candidates reads:
- The United States of America is an exceptional nation whose people have always strived to form a more perfect union based upon our founding principles.
- Our Founding Fathers – including George Washington and Thomas Jefferson – as well as leaders like Abraham Lincoln, Frederick Douglass and Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr. were among the greatest Americans to ever live, and they deserve to be honored as heroes.
- Our children and grandchildren should be taught to take pride in their country, to respect our founding principles of liberty and equality, and to have a sense of American history that is both truthful and inspiring.
- Civics education should focus on the serious study of our founding documents and principles – not coerce students into engaging in extracurricular political action on behalf of contemporary policy positions.
- Our young people should be taught to view one another not according to race or gender, but as individuals made in the image of God.
- Teaching children to hate their country and each other is immoral and deeply harmful to our society and must be stopped.
THEREFORE, I PLEDGE to help replace elected officials, school board members, education commissioners, principals, deans, and university presidents who promote a false, divisive, and radical view of America and our fellow citizens with new leaders who respect our history, our values, our rights, and the God-given dignity of every person.
