Governor Kristi Noem wants the Board of Regents to "preserve honest, patriotic education.”
Two political science professors have different interpretations of the governor’s action.
Noem sent a letter to the regents targeting critical race theory and the Pulitzer Prize-winning “1619 Project” from the New York Times. She says the theory and project mislead students into thinking the country was founded on racist beliefs.
Noem says a college education should cultivate “both a profound love of our country and a realistic picture of its virtues and challenges.”
Jon Schaff is a professor of political science at Northern State University who uses the 1619 Project in his classes. He says the politicizing of higher education is nothing new.
“There is a consistent effort across the country, has been for at least three decades, to politicize the curriculum. Under the banner, these days, we talk about decolonizing the curriculum.”
Schaff says Noem and other conservatives are pushing back against that process. But he does not think the governor will dictate what professors can teach. He says the real target might be co-curricular programs, including those that determine who gets to speak on campus.
Pam Carriveau is a professor of political science at Black Hills State University. She has a different view of Noem’s letter.
“It’s a way to position, it’s a way to raise your political stature if you’re considering higher office perhaps.”
Carriveau says critiques of critical race theory and the 1619 Project are more about politics than education.
“It’s not really an honest discussion of what we’re teaching in our classes or what our students are thinking."
Noem's letter asks the regents whether public funds are supporting things like the 1619 Project. It questions whether university classrooms are places of learning or indoctrination. And it asks whether university diversity offices are experiencing “mission creep.”