Tallahassee faith leaders discuss 'culture wars' in public schools at Village Square event
The "God Squad," a diverse group of local faith leaders, hosted a panel discussion Thursday night on parental rights, book bans and the expansion of state-funded private school vouchers – all drivers of the "culture wars" taking place in public schools.
Their goal: To guide a tricky discussion on the growing political nature of public schools, and how arguments in heated debates can be addressed respectfully and prioritize education.
Discussions on differences are vital for students, said Lea Marshall, a 30-year veteran theater teacher at Leon High School.
She was one of about 40 people who attended the event at St. John’s Episcopal Church downtown, sponsored by The Village Square, which describes itself as "a non-partisan public educational forum on matters of local, state and national importance."
She said for the seven years she's taught the class, she has guided pointed discussions with her students who differ in beliefs and opinions to foster healthy discourse.
"My first-year teaching at Leon, my theme was fear versus love," Marshall said. "Because we operate out of fear or we operate out of love. The big shift that I have seen over the last 30 years is that there is so much fear now, instead of love."
She added: "I think we have switched into this culture of fear, instead of making gracious assumptions. Being able to have a discussion like this is value-rich, and (it) respects everybody's values in the classroom."
Under the administration of Gov. Ron DeSantis, Florida has passed legislation that sparked controversy, such as expanding public funding of private schools, limiting students' instructional materials, giving parents' ultimate say over what children may be taught, and barring the use of students' preferred pronouns.
The God Squad panel consisted of four faith leaders: Pastor Joseph Davis Jr. of Truth Gatherers Dream Center Church, the Rev. Latricia Scriven of St. Paul’s United Methodist Church, Rabbi Stefanie Posner of Temple Israel and Father Tim Holeda, rector of St. Thomas More Co-Cathedral.
Moderated by Holeda, the hot-button issues for the event were focused on parental rights, book bans, digital media and faith-based private schools.
A featured guest on the panel was Leon County School Board member Marcus Nicolas, who represents District 5, which includes some of the county's poorest ZIP codes. The event's attendees included teachers, retired educators and folks who like to keep an open ear to policies related to public schools.
"I would say what makes it a war is the need to impose on others a specific way of viewing the world," Scriven said. "It's OK that we view the world through a different lens. We have different experiences and traditions or religions, and that shapes who we are and how we engage."
Nicolas said parental rights have always been a thing, citing his time as an English teacher at Amos P. Godby High School, but it became politicized during the pandemic, sparking the current battle over book restrictions.
"From my perspective, book bans were the first real tangible disruption of public education," he said.
While the Leon County School District says it hasn't officially banned any books, there have been several pulled from library shelves after complaints from parents. Books were vetted by librarians for inappropriate content.
Posner said private school vouchers, the availability of which has recently been expanded by the state, may be causing more harm than good by limiting students' exposure to different walks of life.
"I think the benefit of our kids going to school together is that they get to be around so many different kinds of people with so many different kinds of backgrounds," Posner said. "This is how we raise amazing citizens, through these conversations and through the development of education."
All the panelists agreed that the solution to the war is "love and respect," similar to what Marshall teaches her students.
As Holeda put it, "Our hope is that we can send our children to school, to learn information and how to be human."
Alaijah Brown covers children & families for the Tallahassee Democrat. She can be reached at ABrown1@gannett.com.
This article originally appeared on Tallahassee Democrat: God Squad: Local faith leaders discuss educational 'culture wars'
