Elk Grove, CA—Elk Grove Unified School District’s (EGUSD) has proposed significant improvements to its policies and administrative regulations which, if adopted at its upcoming September 17th board of trustees’ meeting, will end the district’s highly controversial practice of covertly recruiting young children to secret lunchtime clubs affirming sexual orientation and gender identity on its elementary school campuses. Parents became alarmed in early 2024 after learning that these undisclosed lunchtime clubs existed at Pleasant Grove Elementary School (PGES) and five other District elementary schools. These LGBTQ+ promoting clubs recruited children in the 8 to 12-year-old range and affirmed culturally controversial views about sexual orientation and gender identity—all without parental notice or consent.
The National Center for Law & Policy, after being retained to represent several district families, submitted a comprehensive cease and desist letter to EGUSD on March 21, 2024, demanding the district permanently suspend its UBU and Rainbow clubs in all district elementary schools because they are not age-appropriate for younger district students and undermine the religious beliefs of many families. In the alternative, the NCLP demanded that best practices legally require that EGUSD provide informed consent to parents in the form detailed descriptions of the clubs, including all activities, materials and books used and an opt-in permission slip signed by parents before young children could participate. On April 1, 2024, the NCLP also submitted a California Public Records Act (CPRA) request to EGUSD, related to the district’s formation of the controversial clubs and its policies. In response, EGUSD has been slowly providing responsive documents over the summer—with some relevant documents still outstanding.
Mary Congdon, a concerned parent, stated, “We deeply appreciate EGUSD’s commitment to upholding the principles of parental consent. By valuing the voices of parents, the district ensures that every decision made is in the best interest of our children and respects the vital role that families play in their education and well-being.”
“The government must stop using sex as a weapon,” stated Dean Broyles, a constitutional attorney who serves as the president and chief counsel of the NCLP. “In America, where the U.S. Constitution requires that we respect the fundamental rights of parents and honor the religious freedom of families, these clubs should not even exist at the elementary school level. However, I am pleased that Elk Grove Unified School District has decided to provide parents with informed consent before young students may participate in these controversial clubs that focus on controversial viewpoints about human sexuality.”
Broyles continued, “We have submitted a letter to EGUSD thanking them for their positive policy changes but also asking them to strengthen the parental notification piece to make sure parents are adequately informed about these clubs. Parental consent must be informed consent, especially when you are dealing with controversial and sensitive issues. Children belong to their parents and families, not the state. California has no legitimate role in coercively imposing its preferred sexual orthodoxy on children and families. If we are to remain a free republic, parents must retain their 14th Amendment’s fundamental constitutional right to direct the education, care and raising of their children.”
The National Center for Law & Policy is a non-profit 501(c)(3) legal defense organization dedicated to the protection and promotion of religious freedom, the affirmation of life, parental rights and other civil liberties. Please visit our website at www.nclplaw.org. For further inquiries, comments, or to schedule interviews, please contact Dean Broyles at The National Center for Law & Policy at 760-747-4529 or dbroyles@nclplaw.org.