Only in today’s education climate could a public school district accidentally label the Constitution and Declaration of Independence as materials it “does not endorse.”
Yet that is exactly what happened in Anchorage, Alaska, earlier this month.
Anchorage Daily News reported that the Anchorage School District placed non-endorsement stickers on booklets containing the founding documents.
A parent posted a photo of the label on Nov. 3. The sticker read, “The Anchorage School District does not endorse these materials or the viewpoint expressed in them.”
The picture spread quickly across social media. Too many parents to count were rightly outraged that such a warning appeared on the most essential texts in American civic life.
District representative MJ Thim said the label was placed on the booklets erroneously.
Thim explained that the stickers are normally used for flyers and posters from outside organizations.
“This was our mistake,” he wrote in an email.
Thim said the stickers were used because that is standard practice for items that are not official district publications.
He said the district will review its procedures to make sure this does not happen again.
Thim also emphasized that the Constitution and Declaration of Independence are taught in every school. He said these documents “reflect the values we want every student to understand.”
Parents, however, found the incident troubling.
Karen Waldron, who posted the image on Facebook, said she was “honestly stunned.” She noted that these are not controversial documents, but the very foundation of our government.
Hellbound and Down 