During the pandemic, Albuquerque Public Schools allocated hundreds of thousands of dollars in federal relief funds for anti-racism training instead of student learning recovery. In 2021, the district approved $336,500 from the American Rescue Plan for training tied to the People’s Institute for Survival and Beyond (PISAB). Records obtained by America First Legal show nearly $700,000 was ultimately spent.
District officials couldn’t confirm total spending from federal COVID funds due to lack of immediate record access.
PISAB, supported by grants from George Soros’ Open Society Foundations, offers training materials telling “White folks” to “learn how [they] became white” and defines race as a concept created by Europeans to assign status and maintain power.
The programming in Albuquerque included “Community Conversations” to cover core equity and anti-racism principles, along with a multi-day “Undoing Racism” workshop.
The Anti-Racism Training Institute of the Southwest (ARTI), which had worked with PISAB for 23 years, delivered this training to hundreds of district employees, initially focusing on leadership. APS principals and assistant principals participated in courses designed specifically for them.
By mid-2022, at least 721 APS staff, including teachers and senior officials, attended ARTI training according to AFL records.
Bobby Crossin, counsel at America First Legal, criticized the use of funds, claiming the schools took money intended for students and used it for what he called Critical Race Theory indoctrination sessions.
Julie Levin, senior counsel at America First Legal, emphasized concerns about using pandemic relief money during a time schools aimed to help students recover from COVID disruptions.
Records showed APS planning nearly $1 million in DEI training through 2024, reaching 2,000 people annually. In 2022, officials proposed a student component involving equity principles, yet it was not implemented.
ARTI continued its relationship with APS, giving a $27,000 estimate for new training in 2023.
APS defended its training use, stating the programs aimed to improve student achievements.
PISAB continues offering classes across the U.S. in cities like Seattle and Atlanta.America First Legal aims to expose diversions of public-school dollars from education to ideological programs,” Levin said.