BY DANI TIETZ
dani@mahometnews.com
Senate Bill 2762 could mandate “inclusive, medically accurate, and culturally appropriate comprehensive sex education” for students in grades kindergarten through 12th grade if it becomes law.
Presented by sponsors Senator Ram Villivalam (Democrat District 8) and Representative Kathleen Willis (Democrat District 77), the bill would require the curriculum to:
- Promote awareness and healthy attitudes about growth and development, body image, gender identity, gender expression, sexuality, sexual health, sexual orientation, consent, dating, relationships and families;
- Be designed to promote positive behaviors and reduce health-related risk behaviors;
- Be available to students in kindergarten through 12th grade and provide students with the information, skills, and support needed to acquire accurate information to make healthy decisions throughout their lives.
Everything from consent to child sexual abuse to gender identity, and more, would be required teachings in the sex education course.
Sen. Villivalam and Rep. Willis said that students want such materials, especially those from districts that do not include lessons on sexual education or diverse sexualities and genders.
According to the bill, comprehensive sex education for students in grades kindergarten through second grade would include:
- Human anatomy;
- Gender roles;
- Varying family structures;
- Healthy relationships, including friendships;
- Personal bodily autonomy;
- How to promote personal safety, including reliance on and communication with parents and trusted adults;
- Bullying.
Not permitted under the REACH Act — Responsible Education for Adolescent and Children’s Health — is the promotion of “any religious doctrine” or exclusion of the “health needs of individuals who are intersex or individuals of diverse sexual orientations, gender identities, or gender expressions,” according to the bill.
Abstinence is permitted in an array of information and skills taught to students, Leahy said.
Villivalam said he acknowledges the initiative’s detractors may argue “this bill goes too far and that it shouldn’t be required,” Brigid Leahy, Planned Parenthood of Illinois’ senior director of policy, said.
Districts would be required to inform parents about the planned classes at the beginning of each school year.
The bill states that: “A parent or guardian of a student has the right to excuse his or her child from all or part of comprehensive sex education and assessments related to that education through a passive consent process. A school district may not require active parental consent for comprehensive sex education.”
School districts would also be required to post the information about the curricula on their websites, including who will be presenting the information, the duration of instruction, how many students they are presenting to and the number of students opted out.
According to the legislation, “schools have a responsibility to address child abuse, harassment, bullying, interpersonal violence, and personal safety issues,” all of which can impact a student’s health and progress in school.
“It is recognized in the legislation as one of the things that helps young people stay safe and healthy, and that is and should be part of the instruction,” Leahy said. “But we want to make sure that youth get all the information that they need. We want to recognize that there may be, in classes, students that have been or currently are or will be sexually active and they need to be prepared for that.”
If passed, the sex education curriculum would begin no later than July 1, 2021.
