A group of parents at La Jolla High School is criticizing a college preparation course at the school over what the parents perceive as ideological imbalance and “political indoctrination.” School leaders say the San Diego Mesa College professor who teaches the course is within her rights.
The course, “Introduction to Political Science,” analyzes civic and global affairs, among other topics, and is part of an “ongoing commitment to provide college- and career-ready opportunities to our students in preparation for their future,” according to James Canning, spokesman for the San Diego Unified School District.
However, parents Wyatt Collin, Karen Hobbs and David Herrera sent an email to the La Jolla Light detailing their discontent with the course, saying they were writing on behalf of 20 families, most of whom requested anonymity.
They said they also complained to La Jolla High and Mesa College, to no avail.
La Jolla High Principal Chuck Podhorsky declined to comment to the Light and referred questions to Canning.
Mesa College said in a statement to the Light that “we have concluded the content of the course is protected by academic freedom and does not violate the law or SDCCD [San Diego Community College District] policies. Our findings are framed by legal standards and precedent and do not diminish the personal experiences of any member of our community.”
The parents’ concerns center on parts of the course related to the war in Gaza between Israel and Hamas, the Palestinian organization that governs the Gaza Strip. Specifically, they pointed to class readings
when police raided a pro-Palestinian encampment on campus after UCSD Chancellor Pradeep Khosla declared that the encampment “violated campus policy and the law and grew to pose an unacceptable risk to the safety of the campus community.”Some 65 students were arrested, most on suspicion of unlawful assembly. ♦
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