The Glasgow Group is a Maryland-based for-profit educational consultant company specializing in diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) training. Unlike many educational consultant companies, the Glasgow Group works exclusively with private schools. The company has developed ties with other private schools due to the company’s founder, Rodney Glasgow, who has held positions with the National Association of Independent Schools, which sets accreditation standards for more than 1,600 private schools. ¹

In a speech given for an elite private school’s conference in New York City, Glasgow compared parents who oppose critical race theory-based curricula to “white supremacists” said to be responsible for the riot at the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021, and schools to the Capitol Police officers who allegedly “opened the gate.” ²

Overview

The Glasgow Group is a Maryland-based for-profit educational consultant company that specializes in diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) training for teachers and school administrators. Unlike many other companies that work in this field, the Glasgow Group specializes in working with private schools, largely in the Northeast and mid-Atlantic. ³ Because these schools are private, contracts for the company’s work are usually not disclosed. ⁴

Ties to Private School Accreditors

The National Association of Independent Schools sets accreditation standards for more than 1,600 of the nation’s elite private schools. The association keeps a list of “approved accreditors” and outlines “principles of good practice” that it expects its member schools to adhere to. Among those principles is the promotion of “diversity, equity, and inclusion through cross-cultural competency.” If schools do not adhere to those standards, they could lose their accreditation and associated perks, including access to the organization’s marketing tools. ⁵

Members to the National Association of Independent Schools pay $12,000 a year for membership. The organization represents around five percent of all private schools. ⁶

One of the accredited DEI consultants is the Glasgow Group. The Glasgow Group’s founder and president, Rodney Glasgow, has held numerous positions with the National Association of Independent Schools. ⁷

Controversies

Comparing Parents to White Supremacists

In May 2021, Rodney Glasgow was invited to give the keynote address to a virtual conference for New York City private schools that was hosted by the Dalton School, an elite New York City school. In the speech, Glasgow compared parents who opposed critical race theory to the supposed “white supremacists” who stormed the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021. He compared the school staff who also push back on critical race theory to “gate keepers” and the Capitol Police officers whom he claimed opened the doors for rioters. ⁸

In the same conference, Glasgow said that the private schools were “built to serve white male wealth” and that the schools “replicate plantation mentality.” ⁹

Teaching Schools to Oppose Parents

In May 2021, members of the Glasgow Group were involved in a webinar called “Navigating DEI in a Divided Landscape,” sponsored by ISM: Independent School Management. During the webinar, the participants frequently dismissed the parents’ concerns about critical race theory-influenced school programs, discussed excluding parents who disagree, and talked about how best to manipulate schools’ boards of trustees. The consultants even talked about deciding how to limit who can become a trustee. ¹⁰

During the webinar, consultants also dismissed traditional curricula and raised the prospect of expelling students whose parents disagreed with critical race theory. ¹¹

Leadership

The Glasgow Group is headed by its founder, Rodney Glasgow, who works as its president. He is a Harvard University graduate who has held various leadership positions with private schools. ¹²

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2. Smith, Jennifer. “Teacher Compares Anti-CRT Parents To Capitol Rioters.” Daily Mail Online. July 29, 2021. https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-9839755/Parents-oppose-CRT-white-like-Capitol-rioters-says-head-66k-year-DC-school.html.
3. “Glasgow Group.” Parents Defending Education. Accessed November 22. https://defendinged.org/report/glasgow-group-2/.
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5. Sibarium, Aaron. “Why Private Schools Have Gone Woke.” Washington Free Beacon. July 28, 2021. https://freebeacon.com/culture/why-private-schools-have-gone-woke/.
6. Smith, Jennifer. “Teacher Compares Anti-CRT Parents To Capitol Rioters.” Daily Mail Online. July 29, 2021. https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-9839755/Parents-oppose-CRT-white-like-Capitol-rioters-says-head-66k-year-DC-school.html.
7. Sibarium, Aaron. “Why Private Schools Have Gone Woke.” Washington Free Beacon. July 28, 2021. https://freebeacon.com/culture/why-private-schools-have-gone-woke/.
8. Smith, Jennifer. “Teacher Compares Anti-CRT Parents To Capitol Rioters.” Daily Mail Online. July 29, 2021. https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-9839755/Parents-oppose-CRT-white-like-Capitol-rioters-says-head-66k-year-DC-school.html.
9. Smith, Jennifer. “Teacher Compares Anti-CRT Parents To Capitol Rioters.” Daily Mail Online. July 29, 2021. https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-9839755/Parents-oppose-CRT-white-like-Capitol-rioters-says-head-66k-year-DC-school.html.
10. “The Glasgow Group.” FAIR. Accessed November 22, 2021. https://www.fairforall.org/the-glasgow-group/.
11. “The Glasgow Group.” FAIR. Accessed November 22, 2021. https://www.fairforall.org/the-glasgow-group/.
12. “Rodney Glasgow.” The Glasgow Group. Accessed November 22, 2021. http://www.theglasgowgroup.org/rodney-glasgow.html.