Community Group Asking Sartell St. Stephen to Fire Company Over Equity Audit Results

KNSI News Reporter Jake Judd contributed significantly to this story

(KNSI) – A group of Sartell-St. Stephen School District residents say they are upset with the district for hiring a company to audit race relations and raised the possibility of recalling school board members who voted in favor of it.

The group called Concerned Parents and Community of ISD 748 formed after the June 21st release of the audit results from Equity Alliance Minnesota. They say the audit painted the district as racist. There are around 700 members who have joined and are calling for people to pack the next school board work session where the board will discuss the audit’s findings.

Group member Chris Yasgar says the district needs to ditch the company and work with the community instead.

“Sartell needs to get rid of Equity Alliance of Minnesota. It’s never too late to make the right decision. I think they’re the fox in the henhouse and are creating the division in this district. And the staff at Sartell is extremely talented, along with the engaged parents can solve this problem.”

Superintendent Dr. Jeff Ridelhoover sat down with group member Troy Molitor on Wednesday to go over their issues, saying, “Oftentimes when there’s controversial topics, I think that there’s a tendency to create our own narratives. And sitting down at the table and actually having conversation and asking good questions and listening makes a big difference.”

Parents and community members feel that by the district working with Equity Alliance Minnesota, they feel shut out of discussing how to make change. Dr. Ridelhoover explains that as the district begins its strategic plan, he wants the community to be engaged and, “We’re gonna be talking about personalized learning that really weave in the pieces of equity that as a district we’ve been talking about. It’s going to be exciting work. And I think it’s going to bring what has been somewhat of a divisive topic to one that is really providing clarity around what it is and what it isn’t and what we can do as we work forward together.”

Ridelhoover says ISD 748 is not a racist district, but regardless, everyone needs to feel welcome. “You know if there’s tendencies to have conscious or unconscious biases is different than somebody who’s out there with an overt, racist behavior. And I just think that there needs to be more conversation around how we can work together and understand the little nuances that make a difference to the kids that walk through our doors.”

Yasgar says the district hired Equity Alliance Minnesota to conduct an equity audit and says what they will be teaching amounts to critical race theory and accused them of disguising it, adding, “They’re not going to call it critical race theory. It looks like it. It smells like it. It’s critical race theory that uses the same language. There’s that old saying, if it looks like a duck quacks like a duck, it’s a duck. And that’s what this is. They mask it in different words.”

Molitor says he heard from one parent with bi-racial kids in the district who agreed that working with Equity Alliance Minnesota won’t be helpful. “She said, ‘school board, neither you, or anyone of your teachers or administrators are going to teach my children that half of their identity is an evil racist oppressor, while at the same time the other half of their identity is a hopeless, oppressed individual.'”

Dr. Ridelhoover, who started his job as superintendent of ISD 748 July 1st, said, “Our school members are doing the very best they can and during this time and that, I asked for some time for us to demonstrate our work in her efforts and going forward and I think it was well received.”

He said overall, when he had a chance to sit down with Mr. Molitor, “we had a really good conversation and that we found a lot of common ground and ways in which we can move forward and I think that’s really important.”

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