The U.S. Department of Education is in negotiations with the Carroll Independent School District in Southlake, Texas, regarding civil rights complaints filed by four students, indicating that the department has found merit in the allegations of racist and anti-LGBTQ discrimination. The students reported suffering from racist and homophobic slurs and comments during their time at Carroll, with one student facing retaliation for reporting racial harassment and another contemplating suicide due to bullying over his sexual orientation. The Education Department has contacted Carroll district officials to begin negotiating a resolution agreement in response to the complaints.
The Southlake school system will have 90 days to reach an agreement with the Education Department on steps to address the identified problems in the student complaints, following the initiation of the negotiation process. Angela Jones, a Black mother who advocated for changes to protect minority students in the district, expressed validation upon the Education Department’s finding, emphasizing the need for the district to take the recommendations seriously. The controversy in the Carroll schools became a national symbol of debates over race, gender, and sexuality, highlighted in the 2021 NBC News podcast series “Southlake.”
The conflict in Southlake began in 2018 after a video of white high school students chanting the N-word prompted the school board to appoint a committee to address discrimination. The resulting Cultural Competence Action Plan, aimed at preventing discrimination, faced backlash from conservative parents and activists, leading to a political action committee opposing the plan and gaining control of the school board. The Education Department opened investigations into student complaints, which grew to a total of eight cases, potentially leading to federal requirements for diversity and inclusion programs in the district.
Local activists in Southlake have questioned the federal investigation and expressed concerns about federal overreach, with some spreading theories of retaliation against conservative ideologies. Republican politicians raised objections to the federal involvement, while the Education Department maintained its role as a neutral fact-finder in civil rights complaints. The newly elected school board members have made changes that have been seen as less inclusive, such as removing protections against discrimination based on gender, sexual orientation, and religion from the student handbook.
The NAACP Legal Defense Fund, representing the students, is seeking to require Carroll to implement policies from the Cultural Competence Action Plan, including mandatory diversity training for students and staff. Community activist groups have urged the district to address the hostile environment and fulfill its responsibility to protect all students. Former Carroll students, such as Raven Rolle and Mia Mariani, hope that the federal civil rights investigations will lead to necessary changes to prevent similar incidents from occurring in the future, signaling a potential shift towards a more inclusive and supportive environment in Carroll schools.
