Seattle Public Schools is ‘all in’ for Black boys, with its department of African American Male Achievement and its strategic plan that is “laser focused on supporting Students of Color who are furthest away from educational justice, beginning with African American boys and teens.” However, most Seattle high schools are involved in implementing two curriculums – Coaching Boys Into Men and Athletes as Leaders – that discriminate against boys.
This is our third in a four-part series of articles calling attention to the major problems with the Coaching Boys Into Men and Athletes as Leaders programs. The problems include a lack of regard for boys who are abused by their girlfriends (which, statistically, is not uncommon) and a prejudiced framing of males as oppressors. Learn more from these articles:
- Coaching Boys Into Men curriculum, used in Washington high schools, has major blind spot
- Athletes As Leaders “oppression chart” shows women as inherently disadvantaged, men advantaged
- Inconsistency behind Seattle Public Schools avowed support for Black boys (This article)
- Bias in Team Up Washington’s youth programs REVEALED [5 graphics]
Stereotyping black males
Stereotypes of Black men as criminals contribute to their poor outcomes within the criminal justice system. Black men are overrepresented in prisons, and the “school-to-prison pipeline” is an American disgrace. Is it appropriate for Seattle Public Schools to perpetuate stereotyping Black boys as potential criminals, as the Coaching Boys Into Men program does?
Coaching Boys into Men (CBIM) is a comprehensive violence prevention curriculum and program that inspires athletic coaches to teach their young athletes that violence never equals strength and violence against women and girls is wrong. The program comes with strategies, scenarios, and resources needed to talk to boys, specifically, about healthy and respectful relationships, dating violence, sexual assault, and harassment.
Coaching Boys Into Men, Evaluation One-Pager
Also, is it appropriate for Seattle Public Schools to label Black boys as inherently advantaged compared to their Black female peers, as does the “oppression chart” in Session 3 of the Athletes as Leaders program? It labels males as “given more power and access” and females as “given less power and access”. I wonder how many Black boys in Seattle schools feel advantaged compared to their female siblings.
There is an obvious contradiction between SPS’ stated values of prioritizing African American males while simultaneously running programs with clear anti-male prejudice.
See related post: With its Department of African American Male Achievement, Seattle Public Schools takes a step toward recognizing boys’ disadvantages
CBIM and AAL are about protecting females
Groups like Team Up Washington (discussed below) use ambiguous language when describing the objectives of Coaching Boys Into Men and Athletes as Leaders. Cutting through the fog, here is what the programs are essentially about: protecting females. Seattle Public Schools should not care more about the safety of their girl students than their boy students. Any violence prevention programs Seattle schools implement should teach about healthy and unhealthy relationship behaviors, irrespective of one’s gender. (Read our two previous articles linked above for elaboration on these points.)
Centers for Disease Control data demonstrate that gender is not a significant predictor of one’s likelihood to experience teen dating violence.
City of Seattle spent $20,000 to support these prejudiced, antiquated curriculums
Readers of this story should be concerned about the use of public funds to support the implementation of these curriculums in public schools.
A contract between the City of Seattle and the UW Medicine Harborview Abuse and Trauma Center shows Seattle agreed to pay $20,000 to fund trainings on Coaching Boys Into Men and Athletes as Leaders in 2019. The intent of the trainings, with an expected audience of 160 people, was to get high school coaching staff informed and motivated about carrying out CBIM and AAL with their teenage athletes. This is especially egregious given Seattle Public Schools’ state values regarding prioritizing the success of African American males who are “the furthest from educational justice.”
Should public funds support the promulgation of such biased, prejudiced curriculums that do not treat our boys fairly? Here are two screenshots from the contract mentioned above.
Team Up Washington is behind these programs
An organization called Team Up Washington exists to promote the implementation of the Coaching Boys Into Men and Athletes as Leaders curriculums in high schools around the state. Team Up Washington is a collaboration between the Washington State Coalition Against Domestic Violence, UW Medicine’s Harborview Medical Center, and Lifewire. According to their website, Team Up Washington’s sponsors include the City of Seattle, Seattle Seahawks, Seattle Mariners, and 710 ESPN Radio. Additional supports include Seattle Children’s, Seattle Reign FC, and the Seattle Storm.
Read related post: When Schools Teach Boys They Are Oppressors