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PA school board rejects ‘cis, white male,’ says electing him to lead district ‘sends the wrong message’

December 11, 2022 | | Print Article

The progressive end of advancing diversity, inclusion and equity has continually led to Democrats eating their own and on Tuesday a Pennsylvania school board rang the dinner bell on “cis, white” males ever holding positions of prominence again.

Discriminatory practices taken under the banner of woke taglines like equity and diversity have long passed comical to remain at a constant state of bigoted. On Tuesday, the Upper Moreland Township School Board just outside Philadelphia, PA put this on full display when they held their vote for board president.

After boasting about wanting what is best for the children of the district, board member Jennifer Solot, who was fulfilling the role of temporary acting president until the conclusion of the election, offered commentary on why she opposed member Gregory D’Elia’s nomination in a video clip shared by parental rights advocate Megan Brock.

“I believe that Mr. D’Elia would make an excellent president,” she stated. “However, I feel that electing the only cis, white male president of this district sends the wrong message to our community–a message that is contrary to what we as a board have been trying to accomplish.”

Before the board voted 8-1 in favor of April Stainback, D’Elia’s only nominated competition, Solot added, “I think it’s important that we practice what we preach and that our words have strength when they are spoken, whether we speak them from the neighborhood sidewalks or from behind these tables.”

Solot may very well have been making reference to the Upper Moreland Township School District Comprehensive Plan 2022-2025 which specifically stated on the matter of “Climate and Culture” that one of the strategies would be to “Embed a focus on diversity, equity, and inclusionary practices, which value all students and seek to increase belongingness in the school community, as integral to district work to establish a safe, respectful, and productive learning environment.”

The “Rationale” as they put it was, “Student success necessitates continuous review and improvement on equity, belonging, and inclusionary practices within the district and school system.”

Yet the comments and subsequent vote made it clear that D’Elia’s presence as a “cis, white male” was not one that belonged. Neither were the opinions of those who had supported him as board member Sarah Byrnes hesitated before her vote and said, “This is very hard to do as the new person on the board.”

Another member also hesitated before she joined the six other woman and one other man of the board in voting for Stainback. D’Elia was the only member to cast a vote in support of his nomination.

It’s worth noting that the only black woman on the board, Tiffany Weber, was elected vice president of the board.

Meanwhile, D’Elia, who had been backed by the Upper Moreland Democrats in his election to the board, had stated his goal in being a member was to expand Individual Education Program (IEP) access for students like his own son who struggled until he got the help he needed.

“I feel fortunate that I was able to pursue these things and get to the bottom of the issues,” D’Elia said of son who now “loves school and is excelling,” “but other families aren’t as lucky. I would like to pursue any possible way to streamline that process in the district.”

The district, however, seems more interested in picking winners and losers than seeing that each student actually gets the access to education they need. Social media users reacted accordingly.

Kevin Haggerty
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