Ex-Colleyville Heritage principal accused of teaching CRT quits Texas education board race
The former principal at Colleyville Heritage High School who was the center of a controversy over accusations that he taught and promoted critical race theory has withdrawn as a candidate in the State Board of Education election.
James Whitfield filed to run as a Democrat against Republican Patricia Hardy on Dec. 13, the last day to file, but he withdrew Dec. 22 without giving a specific reason.
Whitfield wrote in a text message to the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, “At this time, I’ve decided not to run for public office. While I may not be running for this seat, I remain committed to advocating for educators and being a champion for ALL students to receive a high-quality, equitable education, no matter their zip code, race, or any other factor — I’ll just be doing it in a different capacity, which needs my focus right now.”
Whitfield and the Grapevine-Colleyville school district agreed to part ways in November. The settlement stated that Whitfield would remain on paid administrative leave until Aug. 15, 2023, when his resignation will take effect.
Whitfield was named the first Black principal at Colleyville Heritage in 2020.
The controversy involving Whitfield began in July when former school board candidate Stetson Clark accused him of teaching and promoting critical race theory, and called for Whitfield’s firing.
Whitfield denied that he taught critical race theory, and said that he has been the victim of racially motivated attacks.
Critical race theory, dating back to the 1970s, is most often taught in law schools and it is a theory that focuses on the premise that racial bias, whether intentional or unintentional, is embedded in U.S. laws and institutions.
Whitfield wrote a lengthy Facebook post following the July 26 school board meeting where Clark called for him to be fired.
In his post, Whitfield stated that he kept quiet about the racial attacks against him to protect his family. But he wrote that the incident involving Clark was the last straw.
In his post, Whitfield also said that in 2019, the school district asked him to remove Facebook photos he and his wife, who is white, had taken on a Mexican beach to celebrate their wedding anniversary.
Whitfield was placed on paid administrative leave on Aug. 30, and the school board also authorized Superintendent Robin Ryan to notify him of the proposed “nonrenewal” of his contract.
Whitfield said at the time that district officials were using race as a reason for not renewing his contract, but the school district said it had nothing to do with race or the photos posted on social media.
During a Sept. 20 board meeting, Ryan and the district’s human resources director listed reasons for not renewing the principal’s contract which included lack of communication, email communications with a party outside the district and accusations of hiding public records from discovery by deleting them from sent items and trash folders.
This story was originally published December 29, 2021 at 5:24 PM.