New York Parents Push Back Against School Superintendent for BLM Presentation and COVID Policies
The Clarkstown Central School District superintendent resigned Tuesday after the school board in Rockland County, New York, voted to oust him over his handling of the COVID-19 pandemic and a controversial Black Lives Matter student presentation.
In a letter, now-former Clarkstown Central Superintendent Martin D. Cox informed the school community that he was resigning from his position due to “personal reasons,” effective Wednesday.
Cheers could be heard from parents at the school board meeting Tuesday night, who have criticized Cox for his handling of the COVID-19 pandemic and a student-led Black Lives Matter presentation, the Lower Hudson Valley Journal News reported.
The BLM presentation was floated last year, but Cox eventually scrubbed the project and it was never shown publicly because parents complained that the slideshow was age-inappropriate and anti-police.
Those in favor of the slideshow said it gave children context for events such as the riots and demonstrations following the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis police custody last year, the Journal News reported.
Cox was criticized by both those in support of and against the presentation, including many who said he let the situation persist until the presentation was dismissed.
BREAKING: A school board in Rockland County, New York, forces the resignation of superintendent Martin Cox, who was pushing for a critical race theory-based curriculum.
According to sources, parents banded together, filed FOIA requests, and pressured the board to oust him. pic.twitter.com/UtY3ZW2eci
— Christopher F. Rufo ⚔️ (@realchrisrufo) September 16, 2021
The district’s Board of Education also confirmed in a statement that the board appointed an acting interim superintendent in the wake of Cox’s resignation, but thanked him for his service and wished “him much success in his future endeavors.”
Without an explanation for Cox’s resignation, the school board voted 5-1 in favor of his departure at the Tuesday night school board meeting, Bronx News 12 reported.
Cox also has been accused of allowing critical race theory to permeate the school district’s curriculum, the Journal News reported.
In addition, he received criticism over the creation of a diversity, equity and inclusion task force, which proponents said he failed to create soon enough, while critics said he would make the initiative biased.
CRT holds that America is fundamentally racist and teaches people to view every social interaction and person in terms of race.
Its adherents pursue “antiracism” through the end of merit, objective truth and the adoption of race-based policies.
The Clarkstown Central School District was also among the first in Rockland County to enforce an indoor, fall mask mandate before New York Gov. Kathy Hochul announced her requirement for schools across the state on Aug. 24, the Journal News reported.
The mask requirement caused an Aug. 12 school board meeting to end early when the audience refused to wear masks.
Finally, Cox was condemned for his plan for COVID-19 quarantined students at an Aug. 26 school board meeting that would provide one-on-one teaching for students without virtual attendance in students’ regular classes.
Parents and school board members were concerned that those students would not receive adequate instruction.
“I don’t think Marty Cox really was connected to the soul of the community and in being disconnected that turned a lot of people off to him and his policies,” parent Joe Solari told Bronx News 12.
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