Parents in the Tamalpais Union High School District have launched an online petition asking the district to “hit the pause button” on its new ethnics studies course to allow for more review and changes.

In particular, two classes on Jewish and Arab American experiences that have been added to the semester-long course are being rolled out without much time for public comment, said Laurie Dubin, a leader of a parents’ group called Tam Union Together.

“The Jewish unit needs work,” Dubin said during the public comment period of the trustees’ meeting on Tuesday. “As one important example, the current lessons give the impression that antisemitism is a thing of the past. Material on modern day antisemitism is completely lacking in this unit and it must be added.”

The petition also asks for a revision of the entire course to remove multiple examples of “problematic content.” It cites references to White supremacy, privilege, liberation, oppression, victimhood and other power dynamics that the group says are not appropriate for what is supposed to be a study of diverse ethnic heritages.

The petition is to be submitted to the board of trustees and the superintendent by 5 p.m. Jan. 27. It asks for an agenda item to be added to the Jan. 28 board meeting regarding a vote on a pause to allow time for curriculum changes.The state mandate for ethnic studies as a graduation requirement is not in effect until the 2025-26 school year. That means the district could delay the course, or just the Jewish and Arab classes, until next year, Dubin said.

Parent feedback sessions on the Jewish experience class have been moved to 5:30 to 7 p.m. Jan. 27 at the district office in Larkspur. The Arab American class feedback sessions will be 5:30 to 7 p.m. Feb. 6.

The curriculum for the Jewish class was released to parents Jan. 9. The curriculum for the Arab class is pending.

“We have a professional development scheduled for January 31st,” Tara Taupier, the district superintendent, said in an email. “We need to wait until we have the feedback before determining next steps. But we have to keep a timeline as we need to provide lead time for teachers and those providing training.”

Redwood High School parent Betina Baumgarten said it is a daunting task to review the class materials in time to give potential opinions on changes.

“I am writing to express my genuine concern with respect to the outrageously short time frame in which the district has afforded parents and attendees of the feedback session as compared to the vast amount of material we are being asked to review to provide ‘meaningful feedback,’” she said in an email to the district.

“As a full time working parent, with a Redwood student who does not drive and with 3-4 hrs of extracurricular activities for which she depends on me to drive her, I simply cannot fathom how I can offer meaningful feedback to this volume of materials in such a short period of time,” Baumgarten wrote.

The course, called “Community and Consciousness,” is being taught to ninth graders in the semester that started Jan. 8. The tentative dates for teaching the Jewish American class are Feb. 24 to 28, while the Arab American class is set for March 3 to 7, Taupier said.

Taupier said the course was discussed at a board meeting last January and approved the following month.

“After receiving feedback from the board, students, and other teachers, the committee made further revisions to the curriculum,” Taupier said, referring to the team of teachers who worked on the project for three years.

“Once the curriculum was finalized and shared, additional feedback prompted the inclusion of lessons on the Arab American and Jewish American experiences,” Taupier said. “Teachers on the writing team used the winter break to develop these lessons.”

Some parents have a different take, saying the course curriculum incorporates outside activist material, including references to oppression, victimization, White supremacy and other terms. The references, which constitute what some state educators are calling “liberated” ethnic studies, were detailed in a 20-page letter the parents sent to the district administration in November.

Some trustees are also distressed by the tone of the curriculum.

“I believe I’ve made it clear that I’m not happy with the way this course is coming together,” trustee Kevin Saavedra said Tuesday. “We don’t have to do it this year.”

The parents’ petition is online at shorturl.at/hqZvx