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Parent tells HCISD board Bluebonnet literacy curriculum would harm students, urges district to reject it
Summary
A parent told the Harlingen CISD board she opposes the proposed Bluebonnet curriculum, saying lessons are not age‑appropriate, rewrite Black and Native American history, and include religious stories; she urged the district to rely on proven, expert‑developed instruction.
Gabriela Gonzales, a parent of two elementary students in Harlingen Consolidated Independent School District, addressed trustees during public audience for non‑agenda topics and urged the board not to adopt the Bluebonnet curriculum being considered by the district.
Gonzales said the kindergarten lessons in the curriculum conflict with accepted early‑literacy guidance and cited concerns the Texas American Federation of Teachers has raised about the material. "The kindergarten lessons go against nearly all up to date recommendations on early literacy," she told the board, and she said the lessons are "not age appropriate in content or lesson length." Gonzales added that the curriculum ‘‘rewrites and erases so much of Black and Native American history’’ and that it risks distorting Mexican‑American and immigrant histories important to the Valley.
Gonzales also raised objections to the curriculum’s inclusion of abridged religious stories. "While I do believe there is a time and place for religious learning, it is not in a school," she said, adding that religious instruction is the responsibility of parents and faith communities rather than the state.
She urged trustees to require evidence that the curriculum measurably improves reading outcomes before adopting it. "Unless it can be proven beyond reasonable doubt either by reputable studies, education experts or teachers themselves that this curriculum will improve reading level test performance, college admission rates, or success in the workforce, then we should allow experts to develop curriculum based on proven methods," Gonzales said.
After the remarks, Board President Greg Powers told Gonzales the board had heard her comments and reminded the public that trustees cannot respond to public‑comment remarks during the meeting.
The district did not take action on the curriculum during the meeting; Gonzales’s comments were heard during the public audience for non‑agenda topics.
