"As a UChicago Law professor, I joined this faculty because of the institution's commitment to open inquiry. The Lab School's new neutrality policy reflects those same principles — principles that protect children's capacity to think for themselves. I hope Lab follows through on them"

"My kids have felt real pressure to align with their teachers' political positions — particularly in history classes, where certain views on colonialism or American history are presented as settled when modern scholarship is more contested. The concern isn't abstract: they worry that disagreeing will cost them a grade or a college recommendation. Wednesday assemblies reinforce this dynamic, creating a sense that students must publicly espouse certain positions to stay in the administration's good graces. We haven't raised these concerns with teachers because we worry they would take it out on our children — and we've heard similar complaints from other parents over the years. A neutrality policy would go a long way toward giving students the space to actually think."

“I myself read the new Lab School neutrality policy as a fair-minded reading of how the University of Chicago's Kalven Report translates to the K-12 setting. The Kalven Report is one of the key reasons I teach at the University of Chicago, having seen all of the problems the absence of those guidelines create for other universities, so I am glad that Lab School is moving in this direction as well. As a lifelong Democrat I would not want my kid's teacher to indoctrinate them in ANY political ideology, even one that I myself might mostly agree with. To learn how to think analytically and write clearly my 7th grader simply does not need to have any idea what my teacher's views are about any political topic.”

“I thought the Standards for Viewpoint-Neutral Education were thoughtfully written, and that it is appropriate to have guidelines that prevent teachers from indoctrinating students and including a standard of age appropriateness.  I also thought they were consistent with the excellent experience our children have generally had with their teachers and in their classrooms.  

However, I have been troubled by past official policy of Lab on related matters, and I believe these Standards provide much needed institutional clarity.  

For example Lab's official Program of Study in 2024 included the topic: "How do we name and affirm our own and others’ racial identities every day?" beginning in Nursery 3.  This emphasis on race as the core feature of identity seemed totally inappropriate, and especially so for 3 year olds.

Beginning in 1st grade (6 year olds) the 2024 Program of Study included: "Recognize that white supremacy and systemic racism affect their everyday lives."  This perspective represents a specific ideology and highly contested perspective.  For high school students, it is a good topic for discussion, although one where differing perspectives should be welcome rather one perspective adopted as a matter of school policy.  For 6 year olds, I believe it is totally age inappropriate and likely to have unintended consequences (based on my own observations of young lab students commenting on these topics)

Given these serious errors of recent years, the clarification provided by the Standards serves an essential function”

"While neither myself nor my spouse are affiliated with the University, Lab School being a part of the University of Chicago was a driving force behind our choice to send our child to Lab. We appreciated the University's commitment to academic excellence, open inquiry, and diversity in all its forms, as well as the fabulous community of scholars, scientists, writers, etc. built into Lab's parent and alumni networks. I believe the Viewpoint-Neutral Standards do an excellent job reinforcing that UChicago's principles of free inquiry are upheld within the K-12 environment. “

"The Kalven Report and the commitment to open inquiry are part of what has made the University of Chicago great. Reaffirming that commitment at the Laboratory Schools is part of what will keep them a a great part of the University of Chicago. In my view, the Standards for Viewpoint-Neutral Education in Support of Student-Centered Open Inquiry are essential to Lab's excellence. Even if figuring out how to implement those standards in a rigorous and age-appropriate way can be tricky, we should work together as a community to live up to those values." 

"I have been troubled by reports that four-year olds at Lab were asked to act out the murder of George Floyd, or watched CNN reporting of the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting. It should not come as a surprise then that students freak out during the (mandatory) annual active shooter drill. I hope that a move towards keeping politics and advocacy out of the early childhood environment, and to encourage older students to engage in open discussion can help students grow to be the engaged, empathetic, and emotionally mature adults that our world needs."