Who Does Deb Neary Work For?

Hint: Students and taxpayers are not a priority for this State Board of Education member.

by Sue Greenwald, M.D. for Protect Nebraska Children-PAC

The State Board of Education is a non-partisan, non-paid position and elected members represent all of the schools in Nebraska. Private, parochial and public schools, even home schools are all governed by the Nebraska Dept. of Education (NDE). The Nebraska Dept. of Education is overseen by the State Board of Education. The State Board of Education is supposed to be the citizen’s check and balance on the spending and policies of the NDE.

In recent years this system has been called into question as special interest groups have had an outsized influence in Department policies. In fact, last year there was a citizen’s petition to abolish the Board and put the NDE under the purview of the Governor. The petition failed, but the sentiment behind it was real.

In 2019, the State Board of Education approved the NDE plan to create a diversity office and pivot the primary focus of Nebraska education away from reading and math, rather prioritizing “Social Justice.” The plan was to apply an”Equity Lens” to every policy and curriculum decision going forward. “Equity Lens” is a euphemism for critical race and gender theory. The plummeting proficiency scores in math and reading in recent years are a direct and predictable result of this shift in focus.

In 2021, The State Board and the NDE released new health standards featuring Comprehensive Sexuality Education, which is the curriculum invented by Planned Parenthood and their associates to increase the demand for Planned Parenthood’s services- abortions and gender hormones.

Emails and texts obtained by Protect Nebraska Children Coalition via public records request detailed the efforts of Deb Neary and the Women’s Fund of Omaha to insert CSE into Nebraska schools, even behind the backs of fellow board members. Ms. Neary arranged for “SIECUS: Sex Ed for Social Change”, the Planned Parenthood partner that distributes their noxious curriculum standards, to “train” members of the NDE staff and the State Board members. The public was intentionally kept in the dark until a final vote was imminent.

This break in trust with Nebraska families led to the 2022 election where 3 of the 4 open seats were flipped from liberal board members to conservatives. Out of those 4, the only liberal member keeping her State Board seat was Ms. Neary. The Board is currently 5 liberal to 3 conservative members.

Politicians all accept donations and there is nothing wrong with doing so, but the donations received by candidates do provide a window into where their loyalties lie.

In the 2022 election cycle, Deb Neary was the recipient of $19,000 of in-kind donations from Planned Parenthood. In-kind donations means that Planned Parenthood covered costs for things like mailers and phone banks. Apparently Planned Parenthood isn’t through with Nebraska schools.

Ms. Neary received $15,000 in cash donations from the Nebraska State Education Association. That isn’t surprising as the NSEA has a history of using the dues of public school teachers to elect Democrats.

It was surprising, however, to receive an email in which Ms. Neary uses her office to support a petition that would eliminate Opportunity Scholarships for poor students who choose to go to a private school. This petition is being circulated by the NSEA, who sees this small attempt by the legislature to provide a school choice option to a few needy children as a threat to their monopoly. In a previous article, we explained how, due to the fact that the scholarship money comes from private donors, the scholarships will use taxpayer funds more efficiently. Yet, the hyperbole from the NSEA would have you believe that the entire public school system is under attack and property taxes will skyrocket. The lies and misrepresentations have bamboozled many well meaning teachers and citizens.

Given the fact that the Nebraska State Board of Education represents private as well as public schools, it is interesting that Deb Neary is leading the charge to scapegoat private schools, and using her elected office to do so. The NSEA is getting their money’s worth with this one.

To be clear, State Board members can and should, as individuals, make their positions known on this important issue so that voters can be informed. The problem with the above email is that it appears to represent the Nebraska State Board of Education’s official position on the matter. It doesn’t.

The NSEA virtually owns Nebraska Democrats. That explains why so many of them were “present not voting” for the Opportunity Scholarship bill. They were ‘for’ helping disadvantaged children have a choice in their education, but ‘against’ angering their teacher’s union overlords. Many of them secretly want this petition to fail.

The way to get a State Board of Education (and a Nebraska Legislature) that is capable of putting school children above a union monopoly is to stop voting for Democrats.

The State Board of Education is poised to drastically change direction with the 2024 election, to the benefit of every Nebraska student. No matter where in the state you live, this race will directly affect the ones you love. The Protect Nebraska Children PAC (PNC-PAC.com) was instrumental in obtaining 3 victories in 2022, and with your help, we will flip the Board in 2024.

At PNC-PAC.com, we have a link for secure online donations. You can set it up to give a little every month if that fits your budget. Administrators are all volunteers, so every penny goes to help a worthy candidate get elected. They can’t do it without you.