Little change in sex education due to bill, Peninsula district says; it’s already taught

There will be little immediate change in the way sex education is taught in the Peninsula School District due to a bill passed into law two weeks ago, the district superintendent said.

Senate Bill 5395, which requires public school districts to provide age-appropriate comprehensive sexual education to all students, kindergarten through 12th grade, has been passed by both the Senate and the House, and is awaiting the signature of Governor Jay Inslee.

The bill requires a curriculum that includes encouraging healthy relationships, teaching students about sexual violence, educating them on consent and inappropriate touching and being inclusive of all students, whatever their gender orientation.

State Rep. Michelle Caldier (R-Port Orchard), who represents the Gig Harbor area, voted against the bill, saying some material in the proposed curriculum is inappropriate for very young children.

Parents and guardians may opt their children out of the sex education course. Furthermore, school districts may either accept the state curriculum or create their own, providing it meets the standards set by the state Office of Public Instruction.

“The current PSD curriculum meets these standards and guidelines, and the district is not intending to adopt new comprehensive sexual health education curriculum or supplemental materials,” said interim superintendent Dr. Art Jarvis in an email.

The message added that if enacted, Senate Bill 5395 would require the Peninsula School District to add only one additional lesson to students in secondary grades beyond what is currently in place.

The Peninsula School District ended by saying “Dr. Jarvis sent a letter yesterday to Governor Inslee communicating our community’s concerns over ESSB 5395.”

The district did not reveal what specific concerns Jarvis had, nor did it release the letter.

If signed by the Governor, the curriculum will be phased into the districts by grade level — for grades six through 12 starting in the 2021-22 school year, and for kindergarten through fifth in the 2022-23 school year.

Senate Bill 5395 was passed by the House on March 4 with a vote of 56-40. The senate then passed the bill on March 7 with a 27-21 vote. In both chambers it was a straight party-line vote, with the Democrats for the bill, and Republicans opposed.

State Rep. Monica Stonier, a Democrat from Clark County who assisted in writing the bill, said the proposed curriculum reinforces the idea of affirmative consent to students, will teach young children the difference between good touch bad touch and how to distinguish a trusted adult, and provides equity, as all districts will have access to the same information.

Michelle Caldier, a Republican state representative and opponent of the bill, said it is inappropriate for young children to learn this type of material, and the majority of public response has been against the bill.

Stonier said the opt out and in for parents is stronger in this bill than the current underlining law.

Caldier said she expects many parents in every district will choose to opt their child out of this education, saying the Battleground district in Clark County, for instance, has over 25 percent of the school district already opting out.

“If you have a third of your classroom who won’t participate, what will you do with the kids?” she asked.

Caldier cited graphic anatomical language she said was included in 3R’s, an approved curriculum provider for grades kindergarten to third and the only one that spans kindergarten to 12. She said it described the sex act in graphic terms and she found that inappropriate.

However, the organization’s web site does not include graphic depictions of sex in lesson plans intended for kindergartners and the younger grades. Instead, those lessons focus on respect for different families and how to recognize inappropriate touching.

Stonier said each district’s school board will choose what age-appropriate material will be taught, and she has never heard of a school board choosing to teach graphic sex to a kindergarten class.

“It shows an incredible lack of faith in school boards and teachers to think they would be teaching such advanced material to little kids without any regard that teachers and school boards have been doing this for years in a responsible, age-appropriate way,” Stonier said.

Caldier said the response of parents was overwhelming against against Senate Bill 5395. During the hearing, Caldier said of the 755 people who showed up for a hearing on the bill, 635 were opposed.

Stonier said many of those concerned parents had been turned out by false and misleading information spread by opponents.

“When you are misled to believe something will harm your children, we will have lots of caring parents show up in concern,” Stonier said.

Debra Lekanoff, a Democratic state representative and supporter of the bill, said 93 percent of districts are already teaching sexual health education in a positive way. Stonier added that many districts are likely already teaching a piece of the bill, but many will have to add a class or two.

“I am very personally attached to this conversation,” said Lekanoff, who was a victim of sexual abuse at an early age. “It builds a platform for children to not only protect themselves from being abused, but teaching the young men and woman on how to protect their bodies, how to say no at an early age.”

Caldier said this vote was not based on the merits of sexual health education, but rather came down to a party-line decision.

“At the end of the day, my job is to listen to the public, even if it is something I disagree with,” Caldier said. “It surprises me a lot of the Democrats did not listen to the public. It should have at least went back to the drawing board to find something we could’ve agreed on.”

Lekanoff said she supported the bill because of her traumatic personal history, saying the curriculum will teach children essential lessons that she wished she had as a child.

“It wasn’t because I needed to be a Democrat or Republican,” Lekanoff said. “I did it because I didn’t want another little girl hiding in the woods, then growing up thinking they did something wrong.”

To view the bill, visit the Legislature’s web site: lawfilessext.leg.wa.gov, and search for Senate Bill 5395.

visit http://lawfilesext.leg.wa.gov/biennium/2019-20/Pdf/Bills/Senate%20Passed%20Legislature/5395-S.PL.pdf?q=20200310084604

This story was originally published March 24, 2020 at 12:00 AM.