MO DESE Ed Commissioner, Margie Vandeven is the President-Elect of Common Core/SEL/Equity Group, CCSSO
Council of Chief State School Officers brought Common Core to all 50 states, and is now bringing in radical progressive SEL (Social-Emotional Learning) to Missouri classrooms.
CCSSO is the Council of Chief State School Officers that pushed Common Core into the States and they are proud of it.
The Commissioner of the Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE), Margie Vandeven, was recently appointed President-Elect of CCSSO for 2022-2023, and will roll right into President for 2023-2024.
Now Vandeven and her organization, CCSSO, along with CASEL and AIR, are pushing SEL (Social Emotional Learning) into Missouri Schools.
CASEL is a partner of the Fetzer group that focuses on science and spirituality. A religion of humanism that is being brought into our schools. Yes, a religion. Humanism.
On August 15, 2023, the Missouri State Board of Education voted to begin the rule making process to mandate SEL Standards on Missouri Teachers.
During the meeting, Commissioner Vandeven stated that the SEL Standards if adopted would be mandated by law under the authority given to the State Board of Education by the Missouri Legislature through their state statute language of “promulgate the rules.”
The SEL Standards are being put under a Mental Health Teacher Training law that was put into Senators O’Laughlin (R) and Arthur Education (D) 2022 Ed Omnibus Bill, SB 681/662.
More on the State Board of Ed and their rule making here 👇
SEL has taken on many forms over the years but most recently it is advancing theories on racial equity, social Justice, student agency, cultural consciousness, and more.
To understand, how it is being used to train Teachers to teach subjects through critical theory and culturally affirming lenses, watch this AFT (American Federation of Teachers) Union conference video on the subject.
Click here → AFT Conference - SEL
There are also many articles, podcasts, and videos on SEL.
Here are a few this author recommends:
https://newdiscourses.com/tag/sel/
https://www.jennifermcwilliamsconsulting.com/blog/sel-a-dangerous-religion
(Note: May have to copy and past the link in your browser.)
Let’s go back to Commissioner Vandeven’s group, CCSSO, and see what they are saying about SEL.
We will not be taking the report page by page, so please take time to read the report yourself at
https://753a0706.flowpaper.com/CCSSOSELMTSSToolkit/docs/CCSSO_SEL_MTSS_Toolkit.pdf?reload=1626708209870
Here are some of the key parts of the report that need to be highlighted. 👇
The heading at the top of the cover page states…
“Integrating Social & Emotional Learning Within a Multi Tiered System of Supports to Advance Equity”
We thought this was mental health? Now we are talking about equity?
(Note: Multi Tiered System of Supports is called MTSS and is already in your schools. Ask your local school what they are using for MTSS. Panorama?)
First page of the report:
Here CCSSO thanks their partners and contributing authors like CASEL and AIR.
(AIR is the American Institute of Research based in Virginia. They have collected a lot of data on Missouri students over the years through grants, like eMINTS.)
The SEL Pilot was administered through University of Missouri through eMINTs in partnership with AIR called PAL. “Prosocial & Active Learning” another name for SEL.
MO DESE used this pilot data that they collected on children (did they get informed consent from the parents?) to present their SEL Standards to the State Board of Education.
(Note: This is what Dr. James Lindsey calls the “SEL Cycle” and he is right. Listen to that podcast here at this link https://newdiscourses.com/2023/03/the-sel-cycle/)
That pilot was passed in 2019 on an Ed Omnibus bill. Seems to be a trend of incrementalism and gradualism in the State Legislature. More on that at another time.
The report has 5 key components.
SEL/MTSS/Equity
Below are the terms and foundational principles, based on progressive talking points to push Teachers to teach Math/ELA/History, etc through culturally relevant and equity lens. Meaning, they will have to teach Math in an equitable manner and use psychological interventions on students to bring them to what they call positive outcomes. This is practicing psychology and secular Humanism on children in public school, which is illegal.
“Integrating SEL into MTSS to Advance Equity.”
Read through this carefully. Note that they will be training Teachers to use psychological interventions to address inequalities and injustice by instructing students on mindsets, belief, and values. Who’s beliefs and values?
CCSSO, CASEL, and AIR want to “Keep equity at the center.”
Something to note, if your school took American Rescue Plan’s ESSER 3 funding, 20% was mandated to be used on “interventions.” Schools will be coerced to use this funding for SEL products for assessment and interventions. Big money is invested into SEL and the lobby groups made sure the funding had to be spent on SEL and MTSS products.
One such product is Panorama, that is owned by the son-in-law of Biden’s Attorney General Merrill Garland. Who made a lot of money recently on his SEL/MTSS product.
The same AG that sent a letter to the FBI calling concerned parents showing up to school board meetings questioning radical agendas like these, domestic terrorists.
Let’s finish up the summary of the report by looking at the glossary of definitions.
Pay attention to the Whole Child language. That is a CDC initiative to bring wraparound services into the school, basically the predatory medical lobby having a clinic in your school.
That is called the WSCC program. Learn more about those agendas here ⬇️
And here ⬇️
Oh and the Medical lobby on the State Board of Ed here ⬇️
In summary, we have a Missouri Education Commissioner as the President-Elect (soon to be President) of the CCSSO that brought us Common Core across all 50 States and that is now bringing us SEL into MTSS to advance progressive ideologies and secular humanism.
How do we stop it? Read this call to action here and be sure to fill out a public comment by 9/14/23.