About Us

Who We Are

The THINC Foundation is dedicated to Transparency, Honesty, and Integrity in the Classroom.

Uniquely, the THINC Foundation approaches the struggle against LES from a broad, secular, and national perspective. We support grassroots efforts to promote critical thinking in K-12 education and advocate for inclusive Ethnic Studies curricula by providing talking points, advocacy materials, and educational information.

We are vocal about the groups who are most harmed by LES principles, but we are not an identitarian or religious organization. We seek to build a broad consensus toward a more pluralistic society. We recognize the regions where LES poses the greatest near-term threat, while shining a light on it wherever it arises across the country.

Watch Mitch Siegler, THINC’s Founder lay out our founding principles in the video above.

Our Mission

The THINC Foundation is committed to preventing harmful and divisive political ideologies from being taught in K-12 classrooms.

We will work to stop these ideologies from seeping into schools by raising awareness about their dangerous content, providing resources for local advocates, and articulating a positive vision for constructive, inclusive Ethnic Studies.

Our Vision

We envision a society in which children are taught to see the world in all its complexity, nuance, and diversity.

Martin Luther King, Jr. dreamed that one day his children would live in a country “where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character.”

As America becomes increasingly diverse, we have a unique opportunity to realize that dream. Everyone deserves to be judged as an individual based on their actions, not their heritage.

Our Values

The values that drive our organization and our mission are:

Education and Critical Thinking

Democracy depends on responsible citizens. We firmly contend that responsible citizenship originates in an education which teaches our children the importance of civics, how to think for themselves, construct sound arguments, and respect people of all backgrounds.

True Diversity and Inclusion

We are dedicated to ensuring that none of our children is made to feel unwelcome or unaccepted. We believe that the only way to foster true diversity – including diversity of thought – is to instill the importance of judging individuals by their actions, not by their physical appearance, ethnicity, religion, or the origin of their ancestors.

Celebrating the Best of American Values

We unapologetically believe in freedom of expression and freedom of speech, that people should have equal opportunities regardless of their immutable characteristics, that democracy is preferable to other forms of government, that hard work and merit are central to personal dignity, and that the American future is a bright one.

Viewpoint Neutrality

We believe that educating our children through a dogmatic, black-and-white, divisive lens is harmful to our children and families, our communities, and the fabric of our country. The goal of education is not activism but gaining the skills and knowledge necessary to ascertain the truth and be a productive member of society. LES asserts that it has all the answers; it does not, and the solutions it proposes are radical and divisive. The best educators help children explore facts through inquiry and healthy debate.

Transparency

We believe that parents and the broader public have a right to know what their K-12 students are learning. We all fund public education, and no component of it should be concealed – especially from parents. Only an informed public can be empowered to advocate on its own behalf.