The Eanes DEI consultant, Mark Gooden, has said that he wants to develop people into racial activists. He has stated that he wants to help people “develop their racial awareness with a hope of transferring that into action that they will then use to transform the organization.”
How? He uses ‘racial reflections’ to draw out people’s thoughts and experiences regarding race.
His words: “The racial reflection is a really impactful way to start [becoming aware of our unconscious bias],” Dr. Gooden said. “I usually coach people in doing this. I give people a space to reach back and dig into their memories and point out some things that have happened in their lives around race. What’s your earliest racial incident or racial situation? What role did you play? How did you feel? What did you do? And then from there, that’s an initial foray. That’s not the full racial autobiography. We take that and we expand it into a deeper, longer essay, if you will.”
OK, picture this: As a teacher, you attend an inservice in which you are asked to share highly personal information. Or, even more inappropriately, as a student, you’re publicly interrogated about your memories about race.
You choose to share? It becomes a bad group-therapy session, and no one looks at you the same. You’re asked to mine your memories. Doesn’t that set off psychological alarms bells? The consultant is NOT your therapist. He’s NOT your pastor. He’s NOT even your friend. Why does he assume he’s qualified or entitled to engage in this public interrogation? Pretty sure no one should be made to publicly share by a guy whose goal is to make you squirm.
You choose not to share? Become a target and outcast, shamed for not participating. Won’t play the consultant’s game? What are you? A racist? You’re certainly now a pariah. And what happens if you have the courage to publicly disagree with him? Think that’s going to help with your career or campus collegiality? Think that’s going to help create better community among students?
(For more thoughts on this, see this short video by Jodi Shaw talking about her experience at Smith College.)
Honestly, do you believe that this kind of conversation—one that asks for racial confession in front of peers and colleagues—could ever lead to better community and social cohesion? Are you surprised that Gooden has NO EVIDENCE that his practices make things better?
How is the Eanes School Board not appalled that Gooden’s goal is to turn teachers & students into activists? How does the Eanes School Board not see that it is NOT OK to subject employees and students to public interrogation? How can the Eanes School Board justify allowing this intrusive practice in the District?
Intrusive interrogation.
Public embarrassment.
Maoist struggle sessions.
By allowing this—by approving and encouraging this—the members of the Eanes School Board have failed their fiduciary duty. Worse yet, they’ve lost their ever-loving minds.
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Source: The Westlake Featherduster
Cited at Parents Defending Education (which notes that Gooden’s original 2020-21 contract was for $170,000. He was ultimately paid $140,000. His contract was renewed for the 2021-22 school year. Want to see the quality of his work? Check out his survey and final report. Here’s a link to his survey, reformatted to be easier to read. Spoiler for survey: He only needed to write one question, repeated 50 times: “How much do you agree with my woke politics.”)