DOE Civil Rights Complaint Filed Against Desert Sands Unified
Contract with CVUSD board member’s TA Mentoring Services, LLC to teach DSUSD kids they are oppressed and how to be a “culture warrior”
*update 3/2/25 another link to LA Times article on Jerry Tello and Calmecac. https://web.archive.org/web/20221015110042/https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2022-09-27/elder-jerry-tello-talks-about-integrating-traditional-healing-in-the-la-community-how-to-save-a-life
In case you missed it, Desert Sands, by their actions, made it clear that they have no desire to follow new federal law under President Trump, and will throw all their eggs into the “Gav and California legislative super-majority of democrats” to save them. We’ll see how that works out.
If you need to catch up, this is the article on DSUSD’s “White people not allowed” contract with CVUSD board member’s TA Mentoring Services, LLC to teach DSUSD kids they are oppressed and how to be a “culture warrior” by practicing Uto-Aztecan shamanism. And this is the video of community members warning the district not to approve the contract.
Below is the complaint and accompanying attachments that I sent to the Department of Education, Office of Civil Rights. This is number one, I’m sure there will be many more to follow for DSUSD and perhaps College of the Desert and the Riverside Office of Education as well. The official complaint form, which you do not need to use but do need all information from the form, can be found here.
Update 2/27/2025—the complaint has been seen and passed on to San Francisco office. I’m a little worried about that….
U.S. Department of Education, Office for Civil Rights Discrimination Complaint
[My name and address redacted]
Reporting a violation of the Department of Education Civil Rights “Dear Colleague” letter of February 14, 2025 by a school district as a voter and a citizen and not on behalf of any individual.
The Civil Rights complaint is against:
Desert Sands Unified School District
47-950 Dune Palms Road
La Quinta, CA 92253
4. Discrimination based on Race, Color, and Sex.
6. Documents attached and described in complaint
7. February 18, 2025
9. Yes, at a board meeting by making a public comment to the item on the agenda.
Preface
On February 14, 2025, Craig Trainor, Acting Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights United States Department of Education, sent a letter to all educational institutions, including the K-12 Desert Sands Unified School District (DSUSD), in La Quinta, California.
The letter warned educational institutions that programs “on the basis of race, color, or national origin is, has been, and will continue to be illegal” and a violation of Civil Rights Law. Those programs would have the following characteristics:
· Programs that “toxically indoctrinated students with the false premise that the United States is built upon “systemic and structural racism” and advanced discriminatory policies and practices….”
· Any program “…under the banner of “diversity, equity, and inclusion” (“DEI”), smuggling racial stereotypes and explicit race-consciousness into everyday training, programming, and discipline….”
· Programs that are “…motivated by racial considerations….”
· Programs that “…preference certain racial groups and teach students that certain racial groups bear unique moral burdens that others do not.”
· Programs that “…stigmatize students who belong to particular racial groups based on crude racial stereotypes. Consequently, they deny students the ability to participate fully in the life of a school.”
· Programs that treat “…students differently on the basis of race to achieve nebulous goals such as diversity, racial balancing, social justice, or equity….”
The letter gave educational institutions 14 days to: “(1) ensure that their policies and actions comply with existing civil rights law; (2) cease all efforts to circumvent prohibitions on the use of race by relying on proxies or other indirect means to accomplish such ends; and (3) cease all reliance on third-party contractors, clearinghouses, or aggregators that are being used by institutions in an effort to circumvent prohibited uses of race.”
This complaint predates that deadline due to the DSUSD approving a contract with a third-party after receiving Mr. Trainor’s letter and after being warned by citizens that the contract violated Civil Rights law.
Complaint
On February 18, 2025, at the regular board meeting of the DSUSD governing board, the board passed Agenda item 25.7 under the Consent Calendar for Educational Services, unanimously and without discussion. The agenda can be viewed on the district’s agenda page (Attachment A), and the video of the meeting on the district’s YouTube channel.
Agenda Item 25.7 was a $30,000 contract with TA Mentoring Services, LLC (Attachment B) for services to be rendered to DSUSD’s La Quinta High School between February 19, 2025, and May 30, 2025. The services were to:
“…provide twelve sessions, with up to thirty students served with "Joven Noble" (Noble Youth) curriculum focusing on teaching students about important values in life: respect, dignity, love, and trust. The intervention will improve self confidence and esteem, and raise achievements. Student, parent, and staff informational meetings will be provided, also outreach materials.”
There is no supporting documentation, or Scope of Services, included with the agenda item, however this is the fifth contract with TA Mentoring Services, LLC and all previous contracts contain the same additional descriptions of Scope Services (Attachment C).
TA Mentoring Services, LLC, according to the contract in Attachment C, follows a program known as “Noble Youth,” also known as “Joven Noble.” The program consists of 12 sessions, one session per week for 12 weeks during school hours, on school property, and under the observation of credentialed district employee. The program is specifically for “boys.”
Joven Noble contends to use “Restorative Practice Through Intensive Mentoring” to “develop and implement a Youth Leadership Project—Noble Youth [Joven Noble].”
Upon further investigation, Joven Noble is a product of the organization National Compadres Network (NCN), as explained in the California Globe article entitled “Desert Sands USD Set to Approve DEI Contract – May Violate DOE Civil Rights Memo” published on February 17, 2025 (Attachment D).
The article presents evidence that TA Mentoring Services, LLC, owned and operated solely by Coachella Valley Unified School District (CVUSD) Trustee, Trinidad Arredondo, is heavily connected with the Joven Noble curriculum developed by NCN. Note that CVUSD neighbors DSUSD and DSUSD Trustee Humberto Alvarez is an elementary school principal in CVUSD.
The Joven Noble curriculum (Attachment E) developed by NCN founder, Jerry Tello, is based on the philosophy developed by the Los Angeles, California based organization CALMECAC. CALMECAC is the name of the Aztec school for the sons of the nobility and translates to “House of Whips.” The school was known for being strict and producing warriors for Aztec society.
CALMECAC, according to a September 27, 2022, article in LA Times (archived link here) was founded by Tello “…therapists and community health practitioners… to explore indigenous healing methods for the Chicano and Latino Community.” The work of CALMECAC and Tello expanded into the founding of the Sacred Circles Center in Whittier, California, which incorporated the “Nahuatl concept of "Tloque Nahuaque.” Sacred Circles led to the founding of NCN and the development of Joven Noble for “black, brown, Asian, indigenous and other oppressed communities,” leading to the conclusion that White heterosexual kids are the “oppressors” the program refers to so often.
According to the Joven Noble curriculum, the program is for Chicano, Latino, and Native Indigenous boys because they are victims of “societal oppression” by the “direct invalidation of [their] values and traditions.” The curriculum teaches that Chicano, Latino, and Native Indigenous peoples are victims of “generations of racism, discrimination, and oppression.” The curriculum further contends that boys in those groups are made into “delinquents” by an “oppressive society,” thus must find their “sacred purpose” through “rites of passage into manhood.”
The curriculum further teaches that participants must “acknowledge the importance of making offerings of gratitude for their gifts” through the practice of “the Huichol Tradition of making Ojos de Dios.” The Huichol people were an Uto-Aztecan people whose religion centered on nature and deities, and the Ojos de Dios was an offering to those gods.
In addition, the NCN has the following LGBTQ2S Statement of Affirmation: “NCN has continued to build the work of honoring the belief that all people are sacred, by focusing on the affirmation and inclusion of members of our community who identify as being “Two Spirit, Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Queer/Questioning, Transgendered (LGBTQ2S)”.
I am not interested in the early mediation process and am seeking that the Desert Sands Unified School District revoke the contract with TA Mentoring Services and rid the district of all DEI and gender ideological concepts, programs, and policies.
Attachments. You should have the choice to download or view.
Well done as usual. Is there power in numbers or will this complaint address the violation and no other complaints need to be registered?