Shock and Awe
"With the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day"
Well, a lot can happen in a week.
On January 25, I published a piece on this platform expressing my gratitude for God’s presence in my life in the midst of a dark spiritual battle I’ve been fighting for several years. A few days later, Chris Bray of Tell Me How This Ends shared my essay with his 13,000+ subscribers. Then, a flurry of activity by federal, state and local officials ensued.
I created this Substack page in August 2020 with the intent of [someday] writing on Christian theology, spiritual formation and discipleship. I still intend to use this space for that work because it is deeply important to me - spiritually and intellectually. But God opened a door for me in my battle to defend parental rights, so I am going to publish a few pieces chronicling my experience over the last few years.
The events following the publication of my last piece are astounding. Shortly after Bray shared my essay, Senator Dave McCormick’s office finally responded to my many inquiries. They explained that the reason for delay was due to the fact that Secretary of Education nominee Linda McMahon’s confirmation process has hit a wall, and therefore it could be months before Trump appointees are in place in the Department of Education. This perfectly illustrates one method the bureaucratic state is using to frustrate the implementation of President Trump’s agenda.
Even so, Senator McCormick’s team leapt into action. By Wednesday afternoon, his deputy chief of staff had introduced me and my attorney to three senior officials in the Department of Education. That introduction led to a rapid succession of communications and confirmation that my complaints were being reviewed by the appropriate people in the Office of Civil Rights. For some perspective, we had more direct communications with senior education officials in a two-hour span on Thursday afternoon than we’ve had in the previous six months combined.
Things also started moving here in Pennsylvania. Kyle King, who is Attorney General Dave Sunday’s chief of staff, confirmed that attorneys in the Office of Attorney General are looking into this matter. Although our request for a meeting has not yet been granted, it is encouraging that lawyers in the AG’s office, who have a duty to uphold the rule of law, are now reviewing the inexplicable delays and conflicts of interest in the pending Pennsylvania Department of Education investigation. It is also noteworthy that Mr. King is uniquely positioned to direct the AG’s response in this matter, given that he served as president of a school board in York County for four years during the height of the pandemic.
On Friday, the Chester County District Attorney’s office finally responded to my multiple communications seeking confirmation that they have preserved all records (including email communications within the DA’s office) related to the investigation into criminal conduct by senior officials in the Unionville-Chadds Ford School District. Michelle Barone, the DA’s chief of staff, apologized for a “misunderstanding” that she said kept the DA’s office from responding to my prior communications. She also assured me that the DA’s office has taken all steps to ensure that the evidence in this case is preserved and will be available when sought pursuant to a subpoena in connection with the administrative investigations.
By the close of business Friday, John Sanville, the highly compensated Unionville school superintendent, had abruptly announced his “retirement.” Although the announcement does not provide an explanation for his sudden resignation at the pinnacle of his career, locally the calls for Sanville to be held accountable are growing louder.
The events of the last few days make it abundantly clear that there will be an independent investigation of my complaint alleging that Unionville school officials have engaged in a multi-year pattern and practice of violating the law, violating my civil rights, destroying and hiding evidence of those violations, and then threatening and retaliating against me in an attempt to suppress my right to speak freely and seek accountability.
Based on the public record I have built over the last few years, when that investigation is complete it will reveal breathtaking misconduct by local public officials who swore an oath to uphold the law and to discharge their duties with fidelity. The superintendent’s resignation is just the beginning.
All of this occurred against the backdrop of two game-changing executive orders issued by President Trump.
On January 29 the president issued the Expanding Educational Freedom and Opportunities for Families executive order, which clearly articulates the policy goal of “support[ing] parents in choosing and directing the upbringing and education of their children.” That order also directs the Secretary of Education to promptly issue guidance to the states as to how federal funds can be used to “support K-12 educational choice initiatives.”
That same day the president issued the Ending Radical Indoctrination in K-12 Schooling order, which takes aim at the insidious efforts to “indoctrinate…children in radical anti-American ideologies while deliberately blocking parental oversight.” Importantly, that order directs government agencies to “enforce the law to ensure that recipients of Federal funds providing K-12 education comply with all applicable laws prohibiting discrimination in various contexts and protecting parental rights[.]”
These executive orders validate years of hard work in the battle to defend parental rights. They also confirm that the Trump Administration is listening to the millions of parents who have been marginalized by the public education machine.
Randi Weingarten, the loathsome president of the American Federation of Teachers, predictably issued a series of press releases decrying the purported “assault on educators and vulnerable kids” and “attacks” against public schools. Yet it is Weingarten, and the countless others like her in state and local government, who have destroyed public education. They created division and fomented distrust, which made these executive orders not only inevitable, but morally imperative.
As God warned Israel through His prophet Hosea - those who sow the wind are destined to reap the whirlwind.
Over the next few weeks, I’ll share a few more pieces chronicling my battle to defend parental rights over the last few years, with links to articles and public records documenting the astounding misconduct and violations of law by public officials in my school district. In doing so, I hope to provide encouragement to parents fighting similar battles against their public schools. If you think of other parents who might benefit from my work, please share this with them.
I also hope to create a written record of the violations of civil rights in this case so that those in authority will ensure that the misconduct in public schools over the last few years, and the vicious attacks on parental rights, are rooted out so that nothing like this ever happens again.
Thank you, Mr. Williams. This is an encouraging update and I look forward to hearing more.