SOUTHLAKE, Texas — Over 75 people attended a community info. session in Southlake on Wednesday night to learn about the future of Carroll ISD if the U.S. Department of Education releases any findings supporting allegations fueling seven federal investigations against the district.
Those seven open investigations by the Department of Education's Office of Civil Rights include three based on race, two for disability issues, and two based on gender or sexual harassment.
The oldest active investigation was opened in November of 2021, while the most recent was opened in January of this year.
You can search the Department of Education's active investigations here.
Carroll ISD has been surrounded by controversy dating back to before the pandemic. Two videos of students using the N-word in 2018 surfaced, leading to a widespread community discussion about race and acceptance.
It also unearthed dozens of testimonials from students and families of different ethnicities of discrimination they had experienced while living in the affluent city nationally known for its schools.
A Cultural Competence Action Plan (or CCAP for short) was crafted over 18 months by a District Diversity Council that included 63 parents, students and school staff members.
One of its more direct impacts would be auditing the district's current curriculum for inclusion purposes. The plan also recommended broadening and diversifying Carroll ISD's existing curriculum. However, the CCAP was dashed, mainly due to right-leaning political pressure faced by the board of trustees.
Videos of parents unabashedly speaking against the CCAP and about race went viral, too.
A political action committee devoted thousands of dollars to upcoming school board races, and district voters overwhelmingly elected trustees running as conservatives and targeting issues of race and sexual orientation in recent elections.
Pam Francis, a member of CREED, which stands for Cultural and Racial Equity for Every Dragon, says things haven't gotten better for the district since the CCAP was done away with.
"We want the district to take these allegations about harassment and discrimination based on race, gender, and sexual orientation seriously and support those students," said Francis.
Francis has had three children graduate from CISD and was on the council that articulated and formed the CCAP.
She, NAACP Legal Defense Fund members, and community leaders hosted the info session on Wednesday to discuss the future of Carroll ISD when the Department of Education releases its findings for any of the investigations.
"There have been changes to the student conduct; we've seen teachers have to take books off the shelves in their classrooms, and we've seen restricted access to libraries while these investigations are happening. If the Department of Education does make findings against the district, it can impact families and students."
Carroll ISD's school board voted in late July on three policies surrounding LGBTQ students in the district.
A Policy Review Committee had been reviewing the district's code of conduct and handbook. One of the district changes removed specific protections against bullying and harassment for LGBTQ students.
The policy listed in the district's online agenda shows "sexual orientation" and "gender identity" crossed out repeatedly, including in anti-harassment and bullying policies that also list race, religion, and disability.
The board also approved policies already passed in Keller ISD and Grapevine-Colleyville ISD requiring students to use the bathroom of their biological sex and another telling students and staff not to encourage using pronouns other than those that match a person's gender at birth.
Formally, the policy allows teachers and staff to refuse to address a student by a preferred pronoun. Board members mentioned, however, that the policy doesn't prohibit teachers from using a preferred pronoun themselves, as it's merely their choice to do so.
Board members also said accommodations may be made to students if they want to use a gender-neutral bathroom.
According to the Department of Education, multiple outcomes can occur after an investigation is completed. Carroll ISD can voluntarily resolve a complaint with the Department of Education before the investigation is finished.
If the agency upholds allegations that supported an investigation and Carroll ISD does not agree to correct its noncompliance "...with the statutes(s) and regulation(s) at issue in the case by entering into a resolution agreement, or if the recipient does not comply with the terms of the resolution agreement and the statute(s) and regulations(s) at issue, OCR may initiate administrative enforcement proceedings or refer the case to the Department of Justice for judicial proceedings to enforce the specific terms of the resolution agreement and the applicable statute(s) and regulation(s)."
The district can also appeal the findings and sue or enter mediation.
Federal funding could be impacted, but Carroll ISD mentions on its website that only 2% of its budget comprises federal dollars.
Francis mentioned that all of the above was said at the meeting -- with many parents surprised by the outcomes.
"There is a worry that this will tarnish the district's reputation and the ability of our students to get into competitive schools. That concern is a real one," said Francis.
A request for comment was made to Carroll ISD's communication department and has not been replied to.