It seems as though the controversy over cultural competency goes on and on. The folks who wanted to make cultural competency mandatory for all new teachers and college staff and professors at the University of Oregon are at it again. This time they want to open a charter school in Springfield, Oregon dedicated to multicultural competency and social justice.

Cultural competency has been deemed too controversial to be included in the Oregon Teachers Standards and Practices Commission requirements for new teachers. And a legal opinion by the Oregon Legislative Counsel’s Office, the legal arm of the legislature, noted that it is unconstitutional to require teachers to advocate for social justice as a condition of employment.

I read with a wry smile the article in The Oregonian lamenting that more people were not running for the Oregon Legislature. The Oregonian blames this on low pay and long hours and those certainly are factors. But I go farther. I blame The Oregonian itself for it's mean spirited portrayal of the legislature over the past year. There is no one The Oregonian likes to bash more than the legislature. So as The Oregonian laments the lack of candidates, it must also accept it’s share of the blame.

When it comes to Cultural Competency, Hasso Herring, editor of the Albany Democrat Herald, said in a May editorial, “Mao had his cultural revolution and Vietnam sent people to re-education camps. Some education leaders in Oregon can’t duplicate those efforts, but they are doing what they can.”

A few months ago Vicki Phillips, Superintendent of Portland Public Schools, re-affirmed her commitment to Cultural Competency (CC). She hired a consultant to do a $15,000 CC assessment of Franklin High School in SE Portland. Next comes CC training that is sure to cost a bundle. I estimate that Portland Public Schools will spend $20,000 just on Franklin High before they are done.

“Oregon is taking cultural competency to a level never seen before.” -Felice Goodenough from the NY Times on NPR, “Justice Talking Debates”.

“What Oregon is doing in cultural competency is unique. Oregon is way ahead of the curve.” -Northwest Regional Education Research Laboratory.

The Oregon Department of Education received a $600,000 grant from the