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Moms for Liberty, the conservative parents organization, boasts that it in last year鈥檚 general election. 

Since then, superintendents in nine of those districts 鈥� stretching from Florida鈥檚 Atlantic coast to central California 鈥� have resigned or been fired, often after a period of conflict with board members.

鈥淪ix new board members clean house first night on the job,鈥� on Facebook Nov. 16, the day after its slate of candidates took office in Berkeley County, South Carolina. Before a confused crowd, they , who had spent his entire career, over 20 years, in the district.

Moms for Liberty founders Tiffany Justice and Tina Descovich told 麻豆精品 that their endorsed board members don鈥檛 always take office with plans to replace superintendents, but that sometimes it鈥檚 鈥渘ecessary.鈥�

Six of those nine districts hired permanent replacements; three still have interim chiefs.

Forcing out district leaders is one of the most obvious ways Moms for Liberty has made its mark over the past two years. As they over library books with sexually explicit content and LGBTQ-inclusive policies, members tend to portray these removals as victories for parental rights. Others say the group has unfairly targeted effective leaders and failed to address pressing issues like teacher shortages.

鈥淭he one thing that districts can point to that will demonstrate change is a new superintendent,鈥� said Andrea Messina, executive director of the Florida School Boards Association, which conducts superintendent searches. 鈥淚t鈥檚 an immediate message to the community.鈥�

ILO Group, an organization focused on women leaders in education, analyzed superintendent turnover in those 17 districts for 麻豆精品 as part of to track leadership changes since the pandemic. 

The Laramie County district in Wyoming 鈥� where Moms for Liberty-endorsed candidates tipped an already conservative board further to the right last fall 鈥� is among those that have seen recent superintendent turnover. Margaret Crespo stepped down in August after serving as chief for two years. She who wanted to restrict books with sexually explicit content from children unless their parents gave permission. 

Crespo said she recognized what she was up against.

鈥淭hey鈥檙e highly organized,鈥� said Crespo, now a superintendent-in-residence with ILO Group. She said the organization knows how to mobilize quickly. 鈥淭hey have taken that skillset and moved it into this very dynamic political arena.鈥�

Florida wins

Moms for Liberty鈥檚 goal is to 鈥渞ecruit moms to serve as watchdogs over all 13,000 school districts,鈥� according to its website. combats what they view as government overreach and seeks to give parents more control over what their children learn, particularly as it relates to race, sex and LGBTQ issues. According to their tally, more than half of their first-time candidates won in the 2022 elections. 

The group鈥檚 impact is particularly noticeable in Florida, where Justice and Descovich served as school board members.

Their candidates flipped seven Florida school boards last November, four of which have had superintendent turnover 鈥� , and counties.

Justice and Descovich say they鈥檙e giving parents a voice in the political process. 

鈥淲e are focused on empowering parents who are seeing problems in their school districts to stand up and fight for their children and make real change by running for school board,鈥� they said in a statement to 麻豆精品.

Last month, they released a new 鈥溾�� with ready-made design templates, that they say should jump start the process for those seeking election in 2024.

As it looks ahead, the group鈥檚 fortunes may be shifting. it endorsed this past April for seats in Illinois, Oklahoma and Wisconsin haven鈥檛 fared too well. Of 32 endorsements in 15 races, just eight candidates won.

The groups advises winning candidates to reject training from their state鈥檚 school board association because many 鈥渇oster the same woke propaganda Moms for Liberty is fighting against,鈥� according to their site.

Because it鈥檚 a nonprofit, it鈥檚 unclear how financially successful the group has been. A 2021 put their revenue at $370,000, but membership has grown since then. There are now 285 chapters nationwide.

Other organizations such as and are working to counteract Moms for Liberty鈥檚 momentum. But experts say they are not nearly as well-funded and lack a national infrastructure.

鈥淭hey’re out there, but they do need some connecting,鈥� said Heather Harding, executive director of Campaign for Our Shared Future, a nonprofit advocating for attention to inclusion and equity in schools.

Moms for Liberty鈥檚 鈥渘etwork structure,鈥� on the other hand, has given them considerable reach, said Rebecca Jacobsen, an education policy researcher at Michigan State University.

Some education advocates say once elected, however, the group鈥檚 members don鈥檛 always act with the same efficiency to address complex challenges in their districts.

“For all the power that they say they have, they haven’t really done much,” said Kathleen Low, president of the Berkeley County Education Association, which represents teachers in the district where Jackson was fired. 

The district is currently responding to a challenge over that include material one parent considers inappropriate for students. Among the titles are those targeted by Moms for Liberty members elsewhere in the state, including 鈥淭he Kite Runner,鈥� the story of an Afghan boy during the rise of the Taliban, which features a rape scene. In another, 鈥淕abi: A Girl in Pieces,鈥� a Latina teen chronicles her feelings about a friend鈥檚 pregnancy, another friend who comes out as gay and her father鈥檚 drug use.

Low called the issues a distraction at a time when schools in her district are short . include counselors, elementary teachers, and middle and high school teachers in core subjects and special education.

Book controversies are 鈥渓ike trying to discuss the feng shui of the furniture in a house that is on fire,鈥� she said. 鈥淭hat’s how serious our situation is with staffing.”

Mac McQuillan, the Moms-endorsed chair of the board, didn鈥檛 return calls or emails seeking comment. 

Others note that solving such problems may not be part of the plan.

Members of Jacobsen鈥檚 research team have been watching hours of school board meetings in districts where Moms for Liberty won a majority last year. Compared to board meetings from 2019, they鈥檝e noticed a shift in the 鈥渄emeanor鈥� of members, including new rules that limit public comments, less engagement and eye contact with parents or others who address the board and a more 鈥渉ostile鈥� atmosphere during meetings.

Moms for Liberty members, she added, have been successful at getting citizens without children in the local public schools to attend meetings and share their concerns about books and curriculum.

鈥淵ou don鈥檛 have to have any agenda if your agenda is to disrupt,鈥� Jacobsen said.

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