House Education Chair Tells Jewish Onliner: CAIR Influence on K-12 Schools is "Deeply Troubling"

Committee leader responds to investigation revealing organized efforts by Hamas-tied group to shape educational content across six states, including sanitization of the September 11th attacks

House Education and Workforce Committee Chairman Tim Walberg (R-MI) expressed alarm over the Council on American-Islamic Relations' systematic efforts to influence K-12 curricula, calling the organization's educational partnerships "deeply troubling" in an exclusive statement to Jewish Onliner.

"Credible reports that CAIR is partnering with K-12 schools to push a radical curriculum are deeply troubling given CAIR's ties to terrorism and antisemitism," Walberg said. "Given the nation's recent disappointing student test scores, we need our schools focused on teaching, not indoctrinating."

Walberg's remarks come in direct response to Jewish Onliner's investigation that exposed CAIR's coordinated nationwide campaign to reshape how American students learn about the September 11th attacks and Islamic terrorism. The investigation revealed that CAIR chapters across six states—Pennsylvania, Delaware, New Jersey, Oklahoma, Florida, and Illinois—are actively promoting educational materials that instruct teachers to avoid terms like "Islamic terrorists" and "jihadists" when discussing 9/11.

The investigation, which built on research by the K12 Extremism Tracker watchdog group, uncovered evidence of apparent central coordination from CAIR's national headquarters in Washington D.C. Documents show the organization's Philadelphia chapter explicitly credits CAIR's national and Los Angeles offices for curating the majority of resources in their September 11th teaching guide.

Chairman Walberg's condemnation adds significant congressional weight to growing concerns about CAIR's educational infiltration efforts. His statement follows Senator Tom Cotton's (R-Ark.) petition to the Department of Education earlier this week, demanding an investigation into what Cotton termed CAIR's "possibly illegal" anti-Israel educational initiatives in public schools.

“Credible reports that CAIR is partnering with K-12 schools to push a radical curriculum are deeply troubling given CAIR’s ties to terrorism and antisemitism. Given the nation’s recent disappointing student test scores, we need our schools focused on teaching, not indoctrinating.”

— Education and Workforce Committee Chairman Tim Walberg (R-MI)

CAIR was named as an unindicted co-conspirator in a 2009 federal terrorism financing case related to Hamas, and a 2013 FBI Inspector General report revealed evidence allegedly linking CAIR leaders to Hamas. The FBI subsequently developed policies to "significantly restrict" non-investigative interactions with CAIR due to concerns about the organization's alleged terror ties.

As chairman of the House committee with oversight authority over federal education policy, Walberg's statement signals potential congressional action against organizations with alleged terror connections gaining systematic access to American classrooms.