Have you checked your child's homework recently?

Let's start with some good news. 

Six JCPS seniors earned a combined $66,200 in scholarships, largely funded by district employees, and found out in a series of surprise visits to their schools. 

I'll now direct you to my colleagues' professional art of the students' reactions. 

Homophobic homework

We have heard so much about children being indoctrinated at school over the past year, and last week was no exception.

Someone leaked a copy of a homework assignment from the Christian Academy of Louisville, which as you likely assumed, is a private school with Christian values. In the assignment, middle schoolers were asked to write to a hypothetical friend to persuade them that being gay is bad. 

Several people, including the school itself, pointed out it's on par with Biblical values. If you send your child to a private school rooted in said values, you get what you pay for, essentially.

Many others were like wait a minute, is this indoctrination? Specifically, homophobic indoctrination? Some of them said the assignment doesn’t align with Christianity’s “love thy neighbor” belief. A few raised concerns about how public tax dollars may eventually be able to indirectly flow to support assignments like these through education opportunity accounts.

Less good news

COVID-19 numbers are slowly climbing again in Jefferson County, sparking a few cries for JCPS to bring back its mask mandate to close out the school year.

Superintendent Marty Pollio can bring back masking if JCPS hits the highest community level, but not solely based on a red transmission level. Right now, Jefferson County is in the yellow for community level, so just keep a mask nearby if you’re planning on visiting a school in the coming week or two.

JCPS COVID-19 levels are around where they were in mid-February. 

Should anyone need them, here are JCPS' current quarantine guidelines.

Speaking of mask mandates

Several parents have been vowing to exact their revenge for NTI, mask mandates and (the non-existent) “critical race theory” by replacing school board members with more conservative-leaning members. (School board seats are technically nonpartisan.)

Interested folks have three weeks to file to run for school board seats in Kentucky. You need a copy of your high school transcript to file, so you may want to hustle if you plan on trying your hand at the most glamorous job in all the land.* (*School board members get small per-meeting stipends, not a salary or a pension.)

In Jefferson County, four seats are up for election: board chairwoman Diane Porter, board vice chairman Corrie Shull and board members James Craig and Linda Duncan.

Craig is the only incumbent who has filed for reelection. Brad Linzy, the man who allegedly threatened Superintendent Marty Pollio over the district mask mandate and legally cannot be near Pollio, announced his intention to run against Craig nearly two months ago and has yet to actually file. 

The only other person filed thus far is Matthew Singleton, who is running for Duncan’s seat. He once appeared before the school board to mention the Taj Mahal, the Ten Commandments and dinosaur blood in a two-minute span. 

Duncan told me she plans on filing Wednesday for another term. Shull and Porter didn't respond when I asked about their plans.

ICYMI

JCPS students, rejoice: Just in time for finals and extra summer learning, JCPS announced a new partnership with a virtual tutoring service called Paper. It is less traditional tutoring and more on-demand help for individual problems kids are stuck on or essay reviews. And it is available 24/7.

Oh, no: Kentucky Education Commissioner Jason Glass and his spokeswoman Toni Konz Tatman both said they tested positive for COVID-19 recently. 

First Amendment rights: Following protests at three JCPS schools earlier this month, more students at Waggener and Male high schools walked out of class in protest of the looming reversal of Roe v. Wade.

Charters champion: Retiring Rep. Chad McCoy, the Republican who steered Kentucky's new charter school bill through to passage, was named a Champion for Charter Schools by the National Alliance for Public Charter Schools. 

'Praying to the gay lords': A belated congratulations to Cristian Hernandez, a Jeffersonville, Indiana, senior who won prom king while dressed in drag. He told NBC he didn't think he would win and was "praying to the gay lords."

Your homework

I am once again requesting that everyone follow my new journalism-specific Instagram. Please and thank you.

OK, bye.

Reach Olivia Krauth at okrauth@courierjournal.com and on Twitter at @oliviakrauth.