Over the last several weeks, MFI has been alerted by parents in multiple towns regarding Panorama surveys being administered in their child’s school. Panorama Education is a Boston based company founded in 2012 that produces surveys they claim are intended to measure students’ social and emotional health. Some surveys collect controversial information on sexual orientation, gender, students’ views on racial issues, and ask personal questions about students’ emotion regulation and how they act toward those with differing points of view. None of the questions are focused on academic learning.
Panorama takes the personal information collected through their surveys to justify implementing social emotional learning curricula intended to change “mindsets.” For instance, if your child’s survey answers reveal views on human sexuality and gender that are not in line with new radical cultural norms, efforts will be made to change their mind using curricula, videos, handouts, recommended books and more. Scroll to the bottom of this page on the Panorama site and watch the Playbook by Panorama Education video, which states explicitly that “students and teachers need to know that their voices are changing mindsets.”
Panorama has been receiving national attention recently. One of the co-founders of Panorama is the son-in-law of U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland, who infamously ordered the FBI to investigate parents speaking up at school board meetings in opposition to critical race theory and comprehensive sexuality education being taught in schools. The data being collected by Panorama is used to justify the insertion of critical race theory curricula, graphic sex ed that promotes deviant sexual practices and transgender ideology, and other objectional “diversity, equity and inclusion” initiatives in school districts.
CEO and co-founder of the survey company Aaron Feuer says Panorama serves 13 million students in 23,000 schools across the United States. That means about 25% of American students are enrolled in a district using Panorama services. And their services do not come cheap.
MA taxpayers are enriching the data company with contracts valued over $100,000 in the past two years. Information obtained through a public records request by OpenTheBooks.com revealed that between 2019-2020 the city of Boston paid $105,500 to Panorama Education, and in 2020 the city of Springfield paid $25,240. Other MA school districts known to have used Panorama services include New Bedford, Wilmington, and Westford.
While this social engineering behemoth is making millions aiding and abetting schools in separating children from the values instilled in them by their parents, those same parents are being stonewalled by school officials when they ask to see a copy of the survey before deciding to opt their child out. Multiple MA parents have reported to MFI that school officials refuse to simply share the survey with them electronically. Rather, education bureaucrats insist on parents coming into the school to meet with multiple faculty members so they can better “explain the intent” of the survey. Panorama does have sample surveys on their website, but none that show controversial questions. Recent reports have shown screenshots of Panorama surveys that ask intrusive and inappropriate questions regarding students’ sexual identity and gender.
Fortunately, parents have the right to opt their children out of this whole process. The Protection of Pupil Rights Amendment (PPRA) is a federal law that governs the administration of surveys concerning multiple protected areas, such as sex behaviors and attitudes, and religious practices, affiliations, or beliefs of the student or the student’s parents. No student can be forced to fill them out. Under PPRA, school districts are also required to give reasonable access to the survey to parents. Making parents take time out of work to meet with school officials before being given access to the survey does not sound very reasonable, especially since the survey can easily be shared with parents electronically.
Special interests have embedded themselves in our public school system. Our children are being commodified and manipulated with these intrusive surveys. Check if Panorama surveys are being administered in your child’s school. If so, opt your child out.
Also, in case you haven’t heard about the other growing opt out movement in MA, click here to read how 1000s of students are being opted out of pornographic sex education in the city of Worcester. What is happening in Worcester is spreading across the state! Now parents are starting their own opt out movements in towns and cities all over the Commonwealth!
To learn more about this incredible effort by MA parents we invite you to attend our Celebrate with MFI event on Wednesday, January 26th, 7 PM at Centro de Adoracion Vida Nueva in Worcester. Come and meet the advocates who are successfully working with MFI to remove their children from explicit sex ed classes. Find out how to start an opt out movement in your community. Contact Michael King for more information.
MFI is working tirelessly to protect MA children in education and to defend parental rights. Please consider donating to help us continue our vital efforts.