The Senate has passed the “Healthy Youth Act” four times in recent years to remodel sex education in our state’s public schools to teach students about human anatomy, sexually transmitted diseases, HIV and AIDS, unwanted pregnancy, the benefits of abstinence and delaying sexual activity, effective use of contraceptives, dating violence and gender and sexual identity.
But after the bills have continually stalled in the House, state Rep. Jim O’Day, the legislation’s co-sponsor, said last month he felt that with a new governor on board more in tune with the idea, the legislation might get off the ground this session.
Well, that new governor, Maura Healey, has more than just lending a sympathetic ear in mind.
Healey took it upon herself Wednesday to propose an update to the state’s sex education guidelines, by outlining her own changes to the status quo.
The updates are “inclusive, medically accurate and age appropriate,” Healey said at a State House press conference about the proposal, which she said covers LGBTQ+ health and wellness, mental and emotional health, personal safety, bodily autonomy, dating safety, violence prevention, physical health and hygiene, nutritionally balanced eating, physical activity, substance use disorder, and public, community and environmental health.
Apparently also frustrated with the House’s history of inaction, the governor seeks to accomplish by next school year what lawmakers have been unable to accomplish for over a decade.
This accelerated timetable reflects the fact that the governor’s proposals only need the Board of Elementary and Secondary Education’s approval, thus bypassing the Legislature.
Healey’s description of her proposal covers much of the same ground and language as Senate and House bills updating schools’ approaches to sex education.
DESE plans to vote at its meeting Tuesday on whether to open the health curriculum framework draft for public comment, after which educators, parents, advocates and other members of the public will have 60 days to share their thoughts on the new regulations.
After the public comment period, the board could revise the draft and vote on implementing the new framework, likely later this summer or in the fall.
O’Day said he has not gotten a chance to review the proposed framework “line by line” yet, but he believes that the updates are in the same spirit of the Healthy Youth Act.
“Most of what we’ve seen in there certainly covers most of our concerns and thoughts about what needs to be in there,” he said.
The draft standards include different guidelines for four student age groups — pre-K through second grade, grades 3-5, grades 6-8, and grades 9-12 each have their own guidelines.
As with the Senate and House bills, should DESE approve the standards in the Healey administration proposal, it would still be up to local school districts to opt in to providing sex education in their schools, per state law. The guidelines would only apply to districts that chose to teach sex ed.
“These updates are also inclusive. They recognize gay, queer, and trans students’ identities and needs,” Healey said. “That’s important and it’s not something we’re going to shy away from. Our LGBTQ+ students face higher risks of mental health issues, including anxiety, depression, and suicidality.”
Comprehensive sexual education in the classroom will also dissuade students from turning to unreliable sources, like the internet, for answers about sex.
That was one of the concerns previously mentioned by state Rep. Vanna Howard, co-sponsor of the House bill.
The Lowell Democrat, who was also on hand for Healey’s announcement, also believes the governor’s plan aligns with the House and Senate versions of the bill.
She praised Healey for taking this step to ensure that all students receive the appropriate sex-ed information.
Instruction of such a sensitive subject also requires parental involvement. Both the Senate and House bills make that perfectly clear.
Participating school systems must adopt a written policy ensuring parental or legal guardian notification of the comprehensive sexual health education provided by the school, the right of the parent or legal guardian to withdraw a student from all or part of the instruction without prejudice, and the notification process to the school for withdrawal.
The policy must also include a process for parents and legal guardians to inspect the program instruction materials prior to the start of the course.
We trust the governor’s sexual education initiative also includes those safeguards.
That DESE review process will disclose just how close Healey’s plans agree with the legislative iterations, which we endorse.
If they’re substantially the same, we’d support the governor’s faster track to implementation.
Discovered on: 2023-06-25 06:36:11
Source: Healey’s sex-ed plan must mirror legislative intent
