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Maple River Education Coalition PAC
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October 2, 2003

DC Conference Pushes "New Civics"
Who represented Minnesota?

The Center for Civic Education staged a "First Annual Congressional Conference on Civic Education" in DC on September 20th - 22nd. They partnered with the National Conference of State Legislators (a liberal state legislators' organization) and a think tank out of Indiana University.

The conference has unleashed a new wave across the states to push the "new civics" into the curriculum in every school. We've heard from various states who are already feeling the impact of September's conference. (See,  "Beware the New Civics") In a nutshell, the "We the People" curriculum undermines our founding principles.

The 357 participants of this national conference included over 65 state legislators, representatives of education departments, various groups pushing the "new civics," 28 employees of the CCE central offices and 15 of the 50 state coordinators that implement their network around the country.

As the CCE continually reminded the conference, their "We the People" curriculum is funded by the U.S. Department of Education by act of Congress!

The CCE is a state-by-state "new civics" campaign led by paid staff in each state to spearhead their work. To view the participants of the CCE civics conference, to see who will be pushing the radical civics agenda in your state, see our website,
(by state) or the CCE website, (alphabetical). Expect to hear them pushing these ideas in your state.

The Executive Director of the CCE, Charles Quigley, opened the conference with a speech in which he promoted the CCE network and "We the People" curriculum. We have done a review of that civics curriculum, available from our office .

Mr. Quigley has responded to some of our criticisms in a letter he wrote to Senator Lugar from Indiana. His letter is available to review, and a response to his letter is at

HOW WILL THIS AFFECT HR 1078, the "new civics" federal bill?
We aren't out of the woods on HR 1078. A report out of DC is this:

         Unless more members of Congress remove themselves as sponsors, HR
         1078 may still be put on the "consent calendar."

Being on the consent calendar means that the bill bypasses committee hearings, no amendments are allowed, and it is passed by a voice vote on the floor of the House. That means not even a recorded vote.

The DC Conference on "new civics" means there will be a new push to pass HR 1078 in states around the country because it promotes civics.

HR 1078 has had 122 Members as co-sponsors. We are down to 117. Good Members are still listed as sponsors. Contact them if they are your Representatives. Urge them to get on the right side of this battle. And keep contacting the White House to oppose their support of HR 1078.

Is HR 1078 about "We The People" curriculum, published by the Center for Civic Education (CCE)?

There is no way to prevent the Presidential Academies authorized in HR 1078 from teaching the "new civics." The CCE is on a roll. They are acting like they run Washington, and they are steering Congressional leaders around like they are leading lambs. And federal academies won't teach the CCE standards? Of course they will teach it.

"IN MINNESOTA"
The Profile of Learning was built on the CCE National Standards on Civics and Government. The radical content of the Profile was reflected most clearly in its "People and Cultures Framework."

The public rejected the Profile of Learning and it was overwhelmingly repealed this year by the legislature. Yet Minnesota's own Department of Education was well represented at the CCE's "Conference on Civic Education." The conference promoted the very "We the People" curriculum and the national civics standards that our legislature rejected when the Profile was repealed!

Who were registered participants from Minnesota at the CCE conference on September 20 in Washington, DC? Minnesota's new Assistant Education Commissioner Mary Ann Nelson (Van Houten) was registered as a participant. Also a registered participant from Minnesota's Education Department was Charlie Skemp, Social Studies Coordinator. Skemp, incidentally, helped write the Profile of Learning "People and Culture's Framework."

Skemp, an employee of the state, also appeared at last summer's "We the People" teacher training seminar, criticizing the new standards being created.

It was interesting to see another author of the Profile of Learning "People and Culture's Framework," Nan Skelton, from the University of Minnesota's Humphrey Institute, featured as a speaker at the Washington, DC CCE conference. "Lessons learned from successful civic education programs" was the title of her panel.

We wonder if she considers the "People and Culture's Framework" an example of a "successful civic education program."

Finally, the MN Senate Education Committee Chairman Senator Steve Kelley is a registered participant in the CCE conference. Kelley was the Senator most responsible for insisting that our Profile-replacement standards include Civics standards. Yet Kelley is also the Senator who, in the dead-of-night conference committee, removed the section of the law that would have required our Civics standards to "promote and preserve" the principles stated in the Declaration of Independence, such as national sovereignty, unalienable rights and self-evident truth. Senator Kelley's idea of civics education apparently doesn't include promoting the Declaration principles. Nor does "We the People."

Why are employees of Minnesota's Department of Education attending a national training conference about installing the National Standards on Civics and Government around the country when our state legislature just repealed those standards?

Establishing state standards that uphold our principles of freedom is a battle that is not over in Minnesota. It is a battle being waged across the country. HR 1078 in Congress is an attack on those principles. The CCE and "We the People" curriculum give us a snapshot of what will inevitably be taught in HR 1078 Federal Academies.

Take action by contacting your Members of Congress. Contact the White House to oppose HR 1078.

In Minnesota, both Congressmen Gutknecht and Peterson remain as
authors. Urge them to remove themselves from the bill.

Members of Congress by state

Minnesota Members of Congress
Call and email them with this message.

See a complete update & sample letter