Corwin Press is a publisher of educational curricula and professional development materials that are sold to K-12 schools across the United States. The company is a division of SAGE Publishing, a large national textbook and educational material publishing company. Corwin Press has drawn criticism for its publication of several left-leaning educational programs including “Deep Equity,” which calls for “systemic transformation” in local school districts and sets out a detailed program for school districts to adopt the Deep Equity training model for its teachers and its Youth Education Stewardship program for students. ¹

Corwin Press was among the firms profiled by Parents Defending Education in its “Consultant Report Card,” which uncovered that the company’s racial equity programs had been used by school districts in at least 10 states. Public records obtained also revealed $104,612 in revenue for Corwin Press from school districts in Kansas and Illinois. ^{2 3}

Background

Corwin Press was created in 1990 as a division of SAGE Publishing, a large national publisher of textbooks and curricula headquartered in Thousand Oaks, California. The initial focus of Corwin Press was to provide professional development tools for school administrators, publishing its first guidebook for administrators in 1991. Since its founding, the company has published hundreds of resources for students, teacher, and administrators. ⁴

Deep Equity

Corwin Press’s most notable offering is its Deep Equity training program, a series of racial equity training programs for school administrators and teachers aligned with critical race theory. The company also publishes an affiliated racial equity curriculum for students, Youth Environmental Stewardship (YES). ^{5 6}

In 2020, the company’s Deep Equity program was criticized for its left-leaning and racial content which led some schools to abandon the program. Among the first school districts to discontinue the program was Chandler, Arizona, after complaints from parental groups about the content. The Chandler school system stated in mid-2020 that it was no longer using Corwin products but had instead hired an outside organization to formulate a diversity, equity, and inclusion program. ^{7 8}

In 2021, Fox News host Tucker Carlson criticized Corwin Press and its Deep Equity program on air, resulting in many school districts including Fauquier County, Virginia defending their decision to use the resources solely as training materials for administrators. ⁹

Consultant Report Card

Corwin Press was profiled by right-leaning advocacy organization Parents Defending Education as one of dozens of left-leaning consulting firms that provide consulting services on critical race theory-inspired diversity, equity, and inclusion issues to schools. ¹⁰

Parents Defending Education identified more than $100,000 in spending by school districts in Illinois and Kansas on Corwin Press’ services and materials. The report additionally found that school districts in at least ten states had purchased the Deep Equity training program from the company. ¹¹

School districts reported to have used Corwin Press’s Deep Equity Program include Chandler, Arizona; Eagle County, Colorado; DuPage and Naperville, Illinois; Lawrence, Kansas; Jefferson County, Kentucky; Frederick County, Maryland; Frederick and Fauquier Counties, Virginia; and the towns of Reading and Lancaster, Pennsylvania. ¹²

1. “Corwin Press.” Parents Defending Education. Accessed November 13, 2021.  https://defendinged.org/report/corwin-press-inc/
2. “Corwin Press.” Parents Defending Education. Accessed November 13, 2021.  https://defendinged.org/report/corwin-press-inc/
3. “About the Consultant Report Card.” Parents Defending Education. Accessed October 28, 2021.   https://defendinged.org/case-study/about-the-consulting-report-card/
4. “Company Timeline.” Corwin Press. Accessed November 13, 2021. https://us.corwin.com/en-us/nam/company-timeline
5. Reagan, Kevin. “Chandler school equity training stirs argument.” East Valley Tribune. November 19, 2021. Accessed November 13, 2021. https://www.eastvalleytribune.com/news/chandler-school-equity-training-stirs-argument/article_ac3f697e-0a22-11ea-89a2-93de59addb38.html
6. Myers, Anna. “End of controversial Deep Equity and YES programs in CUSD.” PHS Precedent. January 16, 2020. https://phsprecedent.com/features/2020/01/16/end-of-controversial-deep-equity-and-yes-programs-in-cusd/
7. Reagan, Kevin. “Chandler school equity training stirs argument.” East Valley Tribune. November 19, 2021. Accessed November 13, 2021. https://www.eastvalleytribune.com/news/chandler-school-equity-training-stirs-argument/article_ac3f697e-0a22-11ea-89a2-93de59addb38.html
8. Myers, Anna. “End of controversial Deep Equity and YES programs in CUSD.” PHS Precedent. January 16, 2020. https://phsprecedent.com/features/2020/01/16/end-of-controversial-deep-equity-and-yes-programs-in-cusd/
9. “LETTER: Setting the record straight about deep equity training for teachers.” Fauquier Times. March 2, 2021. Accessed November 13, 2021. https://www.fauquier.com/news/letter-setting-the-record-straight-about-deep-equity-training-for-teachers/article_a26e33ae-7afa-11eb-b575-972b4b46ccc2.html
10. “Corwin Press.” Parents Defending Education. Accessed November 13, 2021.  https://defendinged.org/report/corwin-press-inc/
11. “Corwin Press.” Parents Defending Education. Accessed November 13, 2021.  https://defendinged.org/report/corwin-press-inc/
12. “Corwin Press.” Parents Defending Education. Accessed November 13, 2021.  https://defendinged.org/report/corwin-press-inc/