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Here is what our monitoring surfaced across 164 districts between Sep 23, 2026 and Sep 30, 2026.
The Week in Brief
This week, districts across the country pushed to spend millions on social-emotional programs and student data mining, effectively turning schools into clinics. On the positive side, several districts in Illinois, Texas, and Ohio passed major policies protecting parental rights, including the right to opt-out of controversial lessons. Parents should watch for upcoming votes on psychological screening, new sex-ed curricula, and policies that could waive their Second Amendment rights on school grounds.
Patterns This Week
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6 districts
Schools Turning into Clinics
Districts are spending heavily on social-emotional learning (SEL) and mental health screening, turning classrooms into therapy sessions without parental consent.
Fair Lawn Public School District · New Hope-Solebury SD · Racine Unified School District · Carlstadt-East Rutherford Regional High School District · Rocky River City · Bellows Falls Union High School District #27
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7 districts
Parents Win Right to Opt-Out
Citing court precedent, multiple districts are strengthening policies that require schools to notify parents and allow opt-outs for controversial content.
Antioch CCSD 34 · Lake Zurich CUSD 95 · Vista del Mar Union · Abilene ISD · Libertyville SD 70 · Glenwood City School District · Johnston Comm School District
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9 districts
Your Child’s Data for Sale?
Schools are signing contracts with outside companies to collect and analyze sensitive student data on everything from emotions to behavior.
Dripping Springs ISD · Cedar Rapids Comm School District · Federal Way School District · Glendale Unified · Putnam County · Fallbrook Union Elementary · San Diego Unified · Arlington and others
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✓ Wins
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Major Win (Level 10)
Board Bans Ideological Litmus Tests for Staff and Students
Beachwood City · Cuyahoga County, OH · Sep 28, 2026
Proposed new Policy 2265 under Item H.2 is a major victory for freedom of conscience. It explicitly forbids the district from requiring staff, job applicants, or students to agree with or express opinions on ‘specific beliefs, affiliations, ideals, principles concerning political movements, or ideology.’ This policy effectively bans the use of DEI loyalty statements in hiring and promotions.
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Major Win (Level 10)
District Policy Cites Precedent for Opt-Outs from LGBTQ+ Content
Antioch CCSD 34 · Lake County, IL · Sep 28, 2026
The district is reviewing Policy 6:80, "Teaching About Controversial Issues." The policy’s legal notes cite a Supreme Court ruling that protects parents’ right to opt their elementary children out of instruction involving LGBTQ+-inclusive storybooks that violate their religious beliefs. This is a major victory, creating a strong foundation for parental notification and consent rights.
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Major Win (Level 10)
District Affirms Parental Right to Opt-Out of LGBTQ+ Content
Lake Zurich CUSD 95 · Lake County, IL · Sep 30, 2026
In a major victory, the district is updating its policy on controversial issues based on a Supreme Court ruling that protects parents’ right to opt their elementary children out of instruction using ‘LGBTQ+-inclusive storybooks.’ This policy update affirms the district must provide notice and allow opt-outs for this type of content.
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Major Win (Level 10)
Major Win for Parental Rights in Proposed Policy Updates
Vista del Mar Union · Santa Barbara County, CA · Oct 1, 2026
The Board is voting on a package of policy updates that explicitly strengthen parental rights. Based on a recent court ruling (Mirabelli v. Bonta), the new policies would prohibit district staff from socially transitioning a student or misleading parents about their child’s gender identity at school. The updates also require instructional materials to be factually accurate and free from ‘advocacy, personal opinion, bias, or partisanship.’
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Major Win (Level 10)
Board Adopts Landmark Pro-Parent Policy Package
Abilene ISD · Taylor County, TX · Oct 5, 2026
Buried in the consent agenda, Item VII.D contains a sweeping policy update that codifies major protections for children and parental rights. The new policies explicitly prohibit staff from socially transitioning students, ban the use of race or sex in selecting students for gifted programs, and make engaging in DEI a fireable offense.
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Watch List
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HIGH CONCERN (Level 10)
District to Approve "Conscious Discipline" SEL Program
Rocky River City · Cuyahoga County, OH · Sep 30, 2026
The board is approving a contract with Conscious Discipline, Inc. under item 12.A. The agenda explicitly states this is a ‘social-emotional learning, self regulation and classroom management’ program, which often replaces core academics with psychological programming and behavior modification.
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HIGH CONCERN (Level 10)
Board Proposes Waiving State Law to Ban Firearms in Cars
Duval · Duval County, FL · Oct 1, 2026
Under the guise of ‘safety,’ the board is proposing to waive state law and strip law-abiding parents and teachers of their Second Amendment rights on school property. Policy 3.40 would make it illegal to have a firearm locked securely in your vehicle in the school parking lot, a right currently protected by Florida law. This policy disarms law-abiding citizens and does nothing to deter criminals.
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HIGH CONCERN (Level 10)
State Mandates Psychological Screening of Students
Bellows Falls Union High School District #27 · Windham County, VT · Oct 1, 2026
The District Quality Standards report under Item 7.c reveals a state mandate requiring the district to use ‘surveys or other tools to measure the social-emotional health of students.’ This policy directs the school to conduct psychological surveillance on children, raising critical questions about parental consent and the privacy of your child’s mental health data.
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HIGH CONCERN (Level 10)
District Buys Student Behavior Tracking System (MTSS)
Putnam County · Putnam County, TN · Oct 1, 2026
The district is spending $58,598 on ‘PowerSchool Analytics with MTSS’. Multi-Tiered System of Supports (MTSS) is a framework that allows schools to track and intervene in student behavior, academics, and social-emotional health, creating a detailed data profile on your child that you may never see.
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HIGH CONCERN (Level 10)
District Hires Ideological Consultants for SEL and DEI
Lawndale Elementary · Los Angeles County, CA · Oct 1, 2026
The board is set to approve contracts with the ‘Yale Center of Emotional Intelligence’ for ‘school climate’ data-mining and ‘Trajectory of Hope, LLC’ for ‘$12,000’ of ‘culturally affirming’ DEI training for social workers. These are backdoor channels for implementing Social Emotional Learning (SEL) and Critical Race Theory-based practices that replace academics with social engineering.
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Week at a Glance
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556
Concerns
-46 vs prior
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| Ideological |
211 |
-40 vs prior |
| Governance |
128 |
-5 vs prior |
| Financial |
126 |
-10 vs prior |
| Parental Rights |
66 |
+2 vs prior |
| External Legislation |
25 |
+7 vs prior |
Most Active Counties
| Los Angeles County, CA |
63 |
| Lake County, IL |
46 |
| Bucks County, PA |
39 |
| Cuyahoga County, OH |
37 |
| Bergen County, NJ |
25 |
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