Elmhurst D-205 Keeps Secret Teacher Training Materials

ELMHURST, IL — Elmhurst School District 205 is keeping secret the contents of a teacher training that some parents deride as critical race theory in disguise.

On Wednesday, the district responded to Patch’s public records request for materials in the training for teachers. It cited the trade secrets exception under the state’s open records law.

The district said Corwin, a publishing company, owns or holds all the rights to the materials provided in the training.

“These materials are valuable and protected trade secrets of Corwin,” Kathy Schmidt, the district’s Freedom of Information Act officer, said in a letter to Patch.

The district took two weeks to respond to the request.

Last year, the school board approved Corwin's “Deep Equity” and “Youth Equity Stewardship” training. The contract cost the district $46,000 for a few days of training.

According to a district memo, the program calls for a framework for faculty and staff to discuss their "own personal identities, as well as honoring and embracing diversity within the schools."

At a school board meeting last month, a number of parents spoke out against Corwin's training. Some are associated with Elmhurst Parents for Integrity in Curriculum, or EPIC.

During public comments, resident Katie Vreeland said her junior transferred out of York High School for a number of reasons, including "overwhelming bias" in the classroom.

She said the Corwin contract is having a "detrimental effect" on Elmhurst. She labeled the program as "racist and bigoted."

"Students are being divided and segregated due to the Deep Equity training," Vreeland said. "Students are being bullied into silence and made to believe if they don't go along, they put their future at risk for fear of a lower grade or a bad recommendation."

Vreeland did not detail how students were being segregated.

The parents' group does not include any references to the Corwin training on its website.