Press Release- April 5, 2022
Contact: Deb Howes
603-930-9248
Proposed Parental Bill of Rights Would Create Chaos in Classrooms
BOW, N.H.—Statement by Deb Howes, president of AFT-New Hampshire, on HB 1431, the parental bill of rights bill, which would give N.H. parents unrestricted rights to direct their children’s public education:
“AFT-New Hampshire strongly encourages parental involvement in their children’s education, the praiseworthy objective of the parental bill of rights legislation. The problem with the legislation is that it takes that aim to untenable extremes and would create chaos in the classroom and erode trust and collaboration between parents, schools and educators.
“Giving parents the unrestricted right to veto any classroom material or aspect of instruction would create constant chaos and could very easily pit one parent’s desires against another parent’s wishes. Encouraging parents to sue districts and schools if they feel their request is not met in a timely or adequate manner advocates an adversarial approach and would result in chronic litigation that won’t help our children, wasting taxpayer dollars. All of this is an attempt to wreak havoc on public education and create a climate of fear in classrooms. It would result in the escalating exodus of good teachers out of the profession.
“This unsound, unnecessary bill—similar to others being introduced in other statehouses and even Congress—is no substitute for real communication between a parent and a teacher and other collaborative, positive ways parents, schools and communities can work together to ensure a high-quality public education and provide the comprehensive support that kids need now more than ever.”
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