Resolution Against HB 1134
Indiana University has been a leader, across all its campuses, in addressing the urgent need for teachers throughout the State of Indiana. In a state where culturally responsive education is mandated and given the distinct contributions of IU Schools of Education’s contributions to the development of teachers well equipped to teach all students in culturally responsive, inclusive, and affirming ways is a reason to celebrate. Yet Indiana House Bill 1134, Education Matters, voted out of committee and scheduled to come to the House floor early next week, threatens much of the progress that has been made. A failure on the university’s part to strongly and publicly oppose HB 1134 would seriously undermine Indiana University’s commitment to racial and other forms of social justice.
HB 1134 puts IU’s holistic and culturally responsive teacher preparation programs in grave danger. As written, it would allow for any student in any class to file a complaint that they were made uncomfortable by a faculty member’s teaching about race and racism, sex and sexism, or any other so-called “divisive topic” listed in this bill. HB 1134 also restricts K-12 districts and schools from requiring that students or employees participate in any similar training. If passed, the bill would create systems of surveillance under which K-12 educators and librarians will work under constant scrutiny, where virtually all their classroom materials and activities will have to be posted and reviewed in advance, and where their teaching would need to be approved by community curriculum committees, the majority of whose members are not educators. Schools will be open to civil suits if they violate the provisions of the bill by discussing topics that create “discomfort, anguish…or psychological distress.” Teachers, principals, and administrators will risk having their licenses revoked if they violate the bill’s provisions. The hostile atmosphere of surveillance and punishment this bill would create around the honest address of racism will almost certainly impact the numbers of educators entering the profession and drive current teachers out, particularly teachers of color.
There is no question that IU and IUPUI university leadership have made important progress in recent years centering social, racial, and economic justice issues– increasing faculty diversity, preparing future teachers, and providing service to the community around issues of equity. We have seen the development of a new diversity, equity, and inclusion pathway for promotion and tenure, and a new requirement that faculty document the ways in which their work demonstrates evidence of a focus on diversity, equity, and inclusion in the faculty annual reporting system. In addition, IU is funding important efforts through its Racial Justice grant program. This public commitment to, and documentation of, our work in these areas is crucial and demonstrates that Indiana University takes current state mandates to teach cultural responsiveness and cultural competence very seriously. How could we fulfill those mandates, or continue these highly promising programs, when any mention of race and racism could expose the university and its professors to civil suits?
Under HB 1134, K-12 educators will face scrutiny through public records requests and the targeting of faculty members whose work draws from and/or develops a critical understanding and focus on eliminating social inequities. The risk of civil suit is even greater for institutions of higher education: any individual, regardless of whether they are a member of the university community, may file a suit if they believe that any university instruction has violated HB1134’s provisions.
The disproportionate impact on Black, Brown, and Indigenous People of Color--K-12 students, their families, educators in our schools, and IU faculty–requires the university to take a firm position on protecting the rights of our students and our colleagues to be seen, to be heard, and to teach in our schools and universities. If we remain silent, we fail our own university community and lose both students and educators of color who will seek out institutions that promote diversity, equity and inclusion. At the same time, our silence will fail K-12 students’ rights to be included in curriculum and instruction and to be taught by teachers capable of understanding and teaching all students, not just students who look like them.
On these grounds, let it be resolved, we, the faculty in the IUPUI Faculty Council, the elected representatives of all IUPUI faculty, firmly oppose HB 1134 and similar legislation. We see our opposition as an expression of our commitment to racial justice and equity. We also see our opposition to this bill as an expression of our support for public school teachers at all levels and to Indiana students, families, and communities of color.
Willie Miller
Jim Scheurich
Co-Authors, on behalf of the IUPUI Faculty Council Executive Committee
January 24, 2022