INDIANAPOLIS—On Wednesday, the Senate Education and Career Development Committee met for the first time for the 2022 Legislative Session. One of the proposals for consideration was Senate Bill 167, which attempts to ban curriculum not currently being taught in Indiana’s K-12 public schools. Senate Assistant Democratic Leader Eddie Melton (D-Gary) released the following response:

“Today was our first Senate Education Committee meeting, and I’m disappointed that the majority of time was spent discussing a proposal to ban curriculum that’s not being taught in our K-12 schools,” Sen. Melton said. “Critical Race Theory is not a subject being taught in Indiana and continued efforts to make it a focus of topic are divisive and partisan—especially when there are so many matters in our education system that we could be having a productive discussion around.

“Our parents already have the right to speak out about what their children learn in school by engaging with their elected school boards or talking directly with teachers and administrators—which many Hoosier parents have done. If we truly want to help our children, look after their well-being and promote their mental health, there’s much more targeted and beneficial legislation we could be considering than a bill to censor what students can learn in school.

“I will not be supporting SB 167 which is a proposal to sow division and will ultimately tie the hands of our teachers when it comes to educating students about objective facts relating to American history. I will continue fighting for our schools to be fully funded as well as advocating for increased funding for traditional public schools and better pay for our teachers. I will also be supporting my colleague Senator Ford’s Senate Bill 174 to address mental health for our Hoosier students. This is a real issue that Hoosiers want to see action on, and I look forward to supporting this bill for residents who are looking for progress this session.”