Reynolds Says She Hopes Senate President Misspoke About Teachers

(Des Moines, IA) — Governor Kim Reynolds says there are a few “bad actors” in any industry, but she disagrees with a general assessment that the media and Iowa teachers are pursuing a sinister agenda. Republican Senate President Jake Chapman used the phrase “sinister agenda” during his opening speech last week. Chapman said, “the attack on our children is no longer hidden…We have some teachers who are disguising sexually obscene material as desired subject matter and profess it as artistic and literary in value.” Reynolds has proposed that when parents raise concerns about books they consider to be “X-rated,” administrators and school boards must respond within 30 days and, if they don’t, the state Board of Education will. The governor’s also distancing herself from Chapman’s remarks. Reynolds said, “I’m not going to take any ownership of that. I hope he just misspoke, and he’ll correct that.” Reynolds pointed to her support of teacher leadership programs and the one-thousand-dollar retention bonus for teachers she just announced last week.