A proposed update to the licensing requirements for new Minnesota teachers — the addition of a cultural competency standard — has become yet another flashpoint in the partisan battle over education.

The Professional Educator Licensing and Standards Board (PELSB) has been developing the new standards, including the language requiring teachers to acknowledge the various backgrounds and gender identities of their students, for three years. The update is necessary, the board and supporters say, to better serve Minnesota's increasingly diverse student population.

"It's really just meant to make sure that teachers have the tools to reflect on their own bias," PELSB Executive Director Alex Liuzzi said in an interview.

But the proposed changes recently caught the attention of conservative groups and gubernatorial candidate Scott Jensen in the leadup to this year's elections when Republicans have campaigned on culture issues around education. Ahead of a mid-August hearing on the standards, conservative organizations rallied their members to voice their opposition.

Supporters of the new standards, including professors and administrators who work in colleges of education across the state, say the changes would mirror how educators are already trained to interact with students. They say acknowledging pupils' cultural background is key in educating Minnesota's increasingly diverse student body.

Students of color represent 37% of enrollment in Minnesota's public schools, according to Minnesota Department of Education data, compared with 26% in 2012.

"All teachers need to be prepared to serve all the students who are waiting for them in our schools and all kids deserve a safe, nurturing and inspiring school experience. We believe these standards will help us get there," Cari Maguire, the University of Minnesota College of Education and Human Development's continuous improvement coordinator, said during a public hearing on the proposed changes.

She also signed a statement of support co-written by a committee of administrators from colleges of education across the state.

Opponents of the change say it would force educators to too narrowly focus on their pupils' cultural backgrounds and take away from time better spent on instruction. Jeff Campbell, leader of the Twin Cities chapter of the Foundation Against Intolerance and Racism, in a statement to PELSB took issue with agency leaders' desire for educators to lean into students' differences.

Instead, he said, students are best served when they're all treated the same.

"Teachers should encourage each student to examine varying points of view rather than to reflexively conform to views attributed to that student's groups or cultures," Campbell wrote.

The group also argues the new standards fall outside the agency's authority and says their implementation would only complicate educator licensing requirements amid a teacher shortage.

Meanwhile, Liuzzi said the agency's move to update its standards was motivated in part so that the requirements for new teacher licenses match the renewal process.

Since 2020, teachers have had to participate in cultural competency training in order to renew their licenses. The goal then, Liuzzi said, was to ensure educators recognize the unique needs of every student entering their classroom and how best to work with colleagues from historically marginalized backgrounds.

"Teachers just aren't prepared to work with the full scope of students who have felt harmed," he said. "Colleagues of color do not feel like they're in a safe environment."

The board has so far amended its draft rules four times since September 2019 as it's held various events to solicit public feedback.

A virtual hearing on Aug. 16 drew more than 300 attendees, split between supporters and opponents of the proposed standards. The call for comments in the lead up to that hearing yielded 21 comments, the majority from university professors backing the proposed revisions.

Administrative Law Judge James Mortenson decided to reopen the public comment period until Sept. 13 at 4:30 p.m. After that, the board may tweak its draft rules once more before submitting them for final review.

Mortenson will consider whether the licensing board has the authority to enforce the proposed rules; if the agency did things by the book as it wrote and amended the standards and solicited public feedback; and whether the board has demonstrated the changes are necessary.

"At this point, the judge isn't going to say, 'Are the rules good or bad?'" Liuzzi said.

The proposed standards, if adopted, wouldn't have a direct impact on what's taught in the classroom, Liuzzi said. They are meant to encourage teachers to reflect and consider how to reach each student.

"We have realized that many educators haven't done the work to address their implicit bias," he said.

Staff writer Mara Klecker contributed to this report.