AISD Addresses Upcoming
President’s Address

Wednesday, September 02, 2009

Angleton ISD has received many phone calls from community members concerning President Obama’s plan to deliver a national address directly to students on the importance of education on September 8, 2009.  The school district has no plans to prohibit teachers or campuses from showing the President’s address during school time.

“I understand that some parents may feel that by us showing the address the school district is encouraging students to prefer a particular political side,” Superintendent Heath Burns said.  “By no means does AISD encourage specific political propaganda, but I have no intentions of disallowing student exposure and trust our teachers to handle politically sensitive curriculum with care.”

Burns says that the school district is not requiring that teachers show the President’s address, but he adds that he can see where such an event could be appropriate to certain curriculum.

“If a teacher believes students will benefit educationally from hearing this particular speech, then the teacher has a right to incorporate it into the classroom,” he said.  “It’s my understanding that the address is about the importance of education and will encourage students to work hard and to actively participate in their own learning experiences.  The importance of education is a universal political view.”

If a parent asks that their child not participate in the address, Burns says that the school district will honor that request and that in such cases the teachers will provide alternative assignments for those opting out of assignments related to this particular address.