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What Does It Look Like to Make a Difference?

Mar 5, 2024 | Civic Engagement

Written By Lena Richee

In the past several years Civic Engagement teams have been working hard, researching, and finding out through trial and error the most effective ways to change our culture. Because of this, we know that one of the best ways to have a positive impact on our community is by getting involved in your local school board. As Missouri school board elections approach, let’s take a moment to acknowledge and celebrate what God has been doing. Francis Howell, one of the major school districts in St. Charles County, is an excellent example of what God’s people can accomplish if we hold fast to our values. With the addition of new voices to their school board, Francis Howell has been pushing back on the dark policies that had previously taken root in the school system.

One of the biggest issues the district faced was CRT curriculum from the Southern Property Law Center, which was administered without being properly approved. As it is the school board’s job to approve any curriculum used by the district, this was a huge breach in protocol. When the racist curriculum was exposed, a video recording showed how a consultant of the political activist group guided teachers to implement the curriculum, hiding its use by changing their vocabulary, so as not to call attention to it (1). Recently, the new board has responded by rescinding approval for the Social Justice CRT curriculum, with measures taken to make it impossible to be reintroduced. This is a major win in the fight to protect our children, but it doesn’t stop there!

Back in 2020 the Francis Howell community approved a proposition which included the building of a new North High School for the school district (2). However, the former BOE members were not good stewards of the community taxpayer’s money. This resulted in the initial estimated $86M for the completion of the high school, skyrocketing to a total of $165M. That is a 91% increase from what had initially been agreed upon. Adding to that, other projects also skyrocketed in price, including paving projects (a 410% increase), playground upgrades (a 83% increase) and security vestibules (a 147% increase). We all know that inflation has made prices higher, but when we see costs shoot up to 83–410% it seems to point more towards mismanagement. Current BOE members are working to correct such mismanagement and have recently saved the district $300,000 in construction bonds by providing appropriate oversight, getting estimates from several different companies to promote healthy competition, and tabling plans that went over budget (3).

With better stewardship of district funds, more financial support can go to other areas of concern within the district, such as constructing individual, single-use restrooms in every school. This enables those who are uncomfortable using the restroom of their biological sex, have an option to use a single-use one, where they can feel safe. Likewise, students who have concerns about sharing a bathroom with an individual of the opposite biological sex can also feel safe (4). This new bathroom policy is much more fair than previous proposals of non-gender conforming bathrooms, as it adds additional choices for those who need the extra option, while maintaining the standard safety protocols for those who do not. This is an example of appropriately safeguarding all students!

This next issue is questionable books being found in many of the local school districts. These books have highly inappropriate written content and oftentimes even pornographic images that are accessible to every student in the school. Having had enough, St. Charles County Parents Association decided to create a website to educate parents and the community, showing which books are available in each school library. The tool gives these books a rating so it’s easy to see the content at a glance and even provides a step-by-step guide on how to remove any inappropriate content (5). Sadly, for now this incredible resource is currently only available for St. Charles County districts, but it is an excellent example of the resources we can build when people chose to get active and invest in changing the status quo. I encourage the parents in other districts to contact and partner with the SCC Parents Association and partner with them on how to start creating such a resource in your own local school district.

Monitoring your child’s content access is important, and the other side of that coin is knowing who has access to your child’s content and data. Previously the Francis Howell School District had a policy that allowed anyone (politicians, companies, marketers, pedophiles) to access the directory information of any student in the district. This directory includes information such as the student’s name, address, email, parent’s info, phone number, and even pictures of the student. Without any limits on access, this data could be used by anyone, for anything. Previously, the only option a parent had was a total opt out, which meant the student couldn’t have their photo in the school yearbook. But thanks to good stewardship this has changed recently. Now parents have more options than before, including one that keeps their child’s information safe, while still allowing the student to be in the yearbook.

These accomplishments are just some of the ways in which the Francis Howell School Board has pushed back the dark and set up boundaries to protect the children under their care. Whether you live in the Francis Howell school district or elsewhere, we encourage you to pray and think seriously about the board members in your own district. What are some ways you can support godly values? And how can you contribute to the presence of Christian men and women showing up in your district. This year, there are seven school districts that will not even have elections because the number of candidates running were so few, that whoever signed up to run automatically got a spot. Certainly, God is not calling everyone to run, but there is likely something everyone can do to participate in the move of God over our nation and schools. As we congratulate all that FHSD has accomplished in the past several years, we hope their successes can inspire you to begin similar changes in your own local school district. Change is possible. Truth can be heard. You are not alone. Fight the good fight side by side with your brothers and sisters and watch what God does!

If you want to get involved but don’t know where to start, try following the St. Charles County Parents Association, Francis Howell Families, or the St. Louis County Family Association, where you can stay informed and up-to-date on the latest issues. Or for a community of like-minded believers, check out the Civic Engagement School Board Team by clicking here.

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