ST. PAUL, Minn. – Senate Republicans introduced what they call a Parents Rights Bill that, according to opponents, is boilerplate from right-wing national groups seeking to disrupt public education. The bill, introduced by Roger Chamberlain, R-Lino Lakes, has as a premise that schools are denying parents access to what’s going on in classrooms. Said Chamberlain: “With the last couple of years and the turmoil, parents have been ignored, they’ve been bullied, they’ve been silenced, they’ve been threatened — even to the point where some people wanted to treat them as terrorists — for simply going to a school board and wanting answers for their children.” Opponents note that there is no significant evidence that parents are being denied information, although there is evidence of orchestrated harassment of school board members by right-wing activists. In Minnesota this harassment has targeted Rochester and several other large school districts.

Education bill provisions

The Chamberlain plan would:

> Create vouchers for parents who take their children out of public schools to pay tuition at private schools.

> Establish education savings accounts for parents to set money aside for tutoring private school tuition and home-schooling supplies.

> Ban schools from withhold information from parents about their children are being taught.

> Require schools make all instructional materials available to parents at no cost.

> Ban school boards from requiring citizen, including disruptive outsiders, to identify their address or contact info to speak at school board meetings.