Forest Lake school board candidate says parents should butt out of the classroom

Ashley Bulmer is running for the Forest Lake School Board and wants parents to understand their place when it comes to teaching and learning: butt out.

In a TikTok video, Bulmer says:

“…I’m sorry to all you parents out there but you do not get a say in your child’s teacher’s lesson plans…”

In the full text of her video, you can feel the contempt Bulmer has for parents who might be concerned or even interested in what’s being taught to their children.

Teachers need to be allowed to teach. I’m a parent and I’m sorry to all you parents out there but you do not get a say in your child’s teacher’s lesson plans. I spent thousands of dollars on a degree and my educator’s license and I would be gosh darned if parents tried to tell me how to write my lesson plans that I literally went to school to learn how to write. You know, if a parent wants to have that much say in a kid’s education then you know what? You probably need to homeschool them.

First, parents have no interest in writing lesson plans for teachers. They would like to know what’s being taught on a regular basis. And according to our most recent poll, an overwhelming plurality (41%) of respondents chose academic excellence when asked to choose the top priority for your local school leadership. The next closest answers were “supporting teachers” at 17% and “student mental health” at 13%. No other answer received more than 9%.

Second, this kind of arrogance and dismissiveness towards parents is exactly what got Glenn Youngkin elected Governor of Virginia last year. After Democrat candidate Terry McAuliffe told Virginia voters he didn’t think “parents should be telling schools what they should teach,” parents overwhelmingly flocked to Youngkin’s campaign and carried him to victory.

Third, Bulmer may be on to something with her final piece of advice for parents that they consider homeschooling. Enrollment in homeschooling and private schooling has skyrocketed in the past few years as parents are increasingly frustrated with public schools choosing equity and inclusion over academic excellence.

Bulmer removed this video from Tik Tok and it looks like she deleted the whole account but the Internet is hard to erase. Her campaign website still includes sections titled “Parents Should Be Parents” and “Teachers Should Be Teachers.”

She is running with a slate of progressive candidates in Forest Lake. Parents there should check out the Minnesota Parents Alliance voter guide for direction on which candidates support parents. After all, concerned voters should be concerned voters.