Hinsdale D-86 Eyes Anti-Racism Consultants

HINSDALE, IL — Hinsdale High School District 86's administration is recommending the school board hire a consulting firm to provide staff with anti-racism training.

In September, the last such consultants agreed to resign after one of them tweeted a message seen as anti-police.

At Thursday's board meeting, Charlotte, North Carolina-based Valbrun Consulting Group is set to make a virtual presentation. It was chosen over three other firms.

The board is not slated to vote on Valbrun at its meeting. In August, the board majority approved the previous consultants, despite pleas from the minority to hear a presentation first. The majority said action needed to be taken quickly.

The district's website includes documents from the expected presentation. The firm said it provides support in the areas of diversity, equity, inclusion and anti-racism.

"We believe that it is a moral imperative to help districts and their staff see and understand the structures, policies, practices and behaviors that cause and perpetuate inequities, so they are better equipped to address them," the presentation says. "This aligns with current research, which suggests that the only way to undo racism is to consistently identify and describe it, and then dismantle it."

In September, the district received a torrent of criticism after one of its previous anti-racism consultants, Christine Saxman, retweeted the message, "Cops quitting because they won't get vaxxed feels like a real two-birds-one-stone situation."

Her firm, Saxman Consulting, and Anew Collective Consulting then agreed to terminate their contract. The district had contracted with them the previous year as well.

Like Saxman, Valda Valbrun, chief executive of the Valbrun Consulting Group, has a Twitter page, but it is private.

Saxman turned her page to private after the controversy.

Over the last year, some residents have accused District 86 of pushing critical race theory, a college-level curriculum that says racism is embedded in the structures of society. District officials say that is not the case.

Similar charges have been aired in school districts around the country.