Montana’s Schools Superintendent Pushes Back Against Critical Race Theory In Schools Montana Superintendent of Public Instruction Elsie Arntzen is pushing back against the federal education department for proposing a program that would teach educators how to incorporate racially and culturally diverse perspectives into their lesson plans. In a memo, Arntzen says she takes issue with the proposed program using the New York Times’ 1619 Project on the history of slavery and teachings about antiracism. She wrote that these teachings are similar to what’s known as critical race theory, and that she doesn’t want that taught in Montana schools. Critical race theory says that systemic racism is a social construct ingrained in American life and laws.