Classrooms should not focus on controversy, political propaganda

I hope your summer is going well. It has been a joy to be back on the farm with my family, but the work of my district and Nebraska still needs my attention. As I am sure many of you are aware, the Department of Education has drafted new Health Education Standards that despite three months of feedback from parents, NDE has not been responsive to their objections and concerns. But Nebraskans can always count on parents and local school boards to take action. Please contact your local school board members with your concerns.

Thirty Nebraska State Senators, including myself, have already called on local school boards to adopt Resolutions to reject the proposed NDE Health Education Standards and retain local control over the content of their health curriculums. Following is a portion of a letter that was sent to each of the school board presidents in my district and I have encouraged them, along with their board members, to take action.

"It is with great concern that I write to you today. For years the parents, guardians and local officials of our state have wholeheartedly rejected the Comprehensive Sex Education curriculum in Nebraska’s Schools. Yet, upon drafting their new Health Education Standards, the Nebraska Department of Education has taken it upon itself to not only include CSE, but other highly controversial content as well.

"I and 29 of my colleagues believe that you hold the key position as gatekeepers in our state to protect the soundness of our children’s education. Enclosed is a Resolution in opposition to the NDE Health Education Standards. I encourage you to stand with school boards across Nebraska by adopting the Resolution and submitting it to the State Board of Education and Commissioner Blomstedt. It is our hope that as they receive Resolutions from every corner of the state, they will get the message that such controversial content has no place in our schools. Classrooms are to be focused on learning, exploring and growing, not for recruiting young minds with political propaganda.

"Let parents decide when their children learn delicate topics of life. Choose to stand with the other men and women across the state, local school board members, who do not want anything to do with such controversial topics. Ensure that the local public schools of District xx remain the safe, wholesome environments they have been for decades. Our schools are the hub of our communities, please take this important stand so that our citizens continue to feel proud to be a part of our school community."

The statutory content education requirements are for reading, writing, mathematics, science, and social studies. In 2014 these areas were expanded to other courses, including health education. Similar to the content areas required by statute, school districts can adopt the standards provided by NDE or they can develop their own standards if they are equal to or greater than the NDE standards. While there is the potential to hold the failure to adopt the required content against a school district when NDE reviews its accreditation, the same cannot be said with any certainty for the expanded content areas.

As always, please feel free to contact my office with any questions or concerns that you might have. My email address is dhughes@leg.ne.gov and my phone number is (402) 471-2805.