Republican delegates demand MSDE account for use of materials from organization now facing 11 federal fraud counts
By Michael Phillips | MDBayNews
On April 21, a federal grand jury in Montgomery, Alabama, returned an 11-count indictment against the Southern Poverty Law Center, charging the organization with wire fraud, false statements to a federally insured bank, and conspiracy to commit money laundering. The announcement was made jointly by Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche and FBI Director Kash Patel.
The core allegation is that between 2014 and 2023, the SPLC paid at least $3 million to eight individuals, some associated with the Ku Klux Klan, the United Klans of America, the National Socialist Party of America, and other extremist organizations — all while publicly raising money to combat those same groups. Prosecutors say the SPLC created bank accounts for fictitious entities to funnel donor money to informants while concealing the payments’ actual purpose.
The SPLC has denied wrongdoing, saying the informant program was a legitimate intelligence operation that saved lives. Legal analysts have also raised questions about the strength of the charges, with some former federal prosecutors predicting the case could be dismissed before trial.
Maryland families may not be following the federal case in Alabama — but they may want to start.
Documents attached to a May 5 letter from 28 Republican members of the Maryland House of Delegates show that SPLC-produced materials under its “Teaching Tolerance” brand — now rebranded as “Learning for Justice” — have been integrated into Anne Arundel County Public Schools’ “Unity Day” programming and are aligned to the organization’s Social Justice Standards framework. An accompanying “Equity Glossary” used in the district draws definitions from “Teaching Tolerance” for terms including “privilege,” alongside sources from Robin DiAngelo and Kimberlé Crenshaw.
The letter, led by Delegate April F. Miller (District 4, Frederick County) and addressed to Maryland State Board of Education President Dr. Joshua Michael and State Superintendent Dr. Carey Wright, demands answers on four specific points: whether any Maryland LEA currently uses SPLC-produced materials; whether MSDE intends to continue any such relationship while the organization remains under indictment; a comprehensive inventory of all SPLC-sourced content in Maryland schools; and an immediate suspension of all SPLC-affiliated instructional materials pending the outcome of the federal investigation.
The letter is CC’d to Governor Wes Moore and the Maryland Accountability and Implementation Board.
The timing is notable. Miller introduced House Bill 116 during the 2026 General Assembly session, which would have required Maryland school systems to publicly disclose all contracts and MOUs — including those for curriculum and teacher training. The bill was assigned to Ways and Means and never voted out of committee.
MSDE had not publicly responded to the letter as of publication.
Whether the federal indictment ultimately results in a conviction is a question for the courts. The more immediate question for Maryland is one of institutional accountability: if state and local education agencies have embedded the frameworks of an organization now under 11 federal counts into teacher training and student curriculum, the public has a right to know the scope of that relationship — and what criteria, if any, MSDE uses to vet the organizations whose materials shape what Maryland children are taught.
Sources: U.S. Department of Justice press release, April 21, 2026; federal grand jury indictment, Middle District of Alabama; CNBC; NPR; CBS News; letter from Delegate April F. Miller et al. to Maryland State Board of Education and MSDE, May 5, 2026, with attached Anne Arundel County Public Schools curriculum documentation.
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