Sexuality Education Policy: Who Makes Decisions?

If you are going to work to support comprehensive sexuality education in your community, it helps to understand all of the various agencies, elected officials, and school district staff who play a part in decisions about the sexuality education young people receive.

This fact sheet provides a basic overview of organizations on the national, state, and local levels that impact sexuality education. Before beginning your advocacy efforts, you may have to do some additional research to determine which agencies and individuals make decisions in your community.

On The Federal Level

For the most part, the federal government does not have a direct role in local sexuality education. Instead it leaves such control to state and local bodies. However, because the federal government does control funding for many educational programs, it can influence programs in local schools and communities.

For example, the federal government currently provides over $168 million of funding for abstinence-only-until-marriage programs each year. Programs that use these funds are required to follow an eight-point, federal definition of “abstinence education.”

Although the federal government cannot require or control the content of sexuality education that is not supported by federal funds, many states and communities see the availability of federal money as a “stamp of approval” for an abstinence-only-until- marriage approach. In addition, the substantial federal investment in these programs has drastically increased the number of abstinence-only-until-marriage curricula and materials that are available to schools and community-based programs. In this way the federal government has been very influential in affecting how sexuality education is delivered in local schools and communities.

It is worth noting that there is currently no federal funding stream for comprehensive sexuality education.

On The State Level

States are much more directly involved in decisions about sexuality education than the federal government. States can mandate that sexuality education be taught, require schools to teach about STDs or HIV/AIDS, set state-wide guidelines for topics, choose curricula, and approve textbooks. These decisions are made by a variety of agencies and elected officials whose titles and responsibilities differ by state. You can contact your state’s education agencies or your elected officials to find out more.

The State Legislature

The State Legislature can enact a mandate for sexuality education or STD/HIV prevention courses. However, less than half of the states require that some form of sexuality education be taught in the schools. Instead, most states allow local school districts to decide whether to provide this type of education.

Some states set rules about the content of sexuality education or STD/HIV prevention courses. Whether or not a course mandate is in place, states can dictate content for those programs that schools choose to teach. For example, a number of states require all courses to “stress abstinence.”

To find out if your state has course or content mandates, visit SIECUS State Profiles at http://www.siecus.org/policy/states/index.html

Departments of Education and State Boards of Education

All states have one or more governing bodies that oversee schools and education policy. These agencies and boards vary by state in terms of authority and title. They may have several responsibilities, such as designing curricula, approving materials, and setting outcome objectives for courses. These bodies can also set policies that specifically dictate the type of sexuality education schools can provide. All of these decisions can clearly affect the sexuality education provided in schools.

To find your state’s education agencies, visit the National Association of State Boards of Education website at http://www.nasbe.org/index.php/web-links/19-sea.html

Local Level

The majority of decisions about education policy are made at the local level. Whether or not a state course or content mandate is in place, local administrators may establish their own mandates. These local mandates may expand upon but cannot violate state mandates. If a state mandates that schools provide information on contraception and STD prevention, a local community cannot choose to implement solely an abstinence-only- until-marriage program that does not contain this information. In contrast, if a state prohibits schools from providing information on these topics in favor of an abstinence-only-until-marriage message, schools cannot choose to include that information in their programs.

It is important for local communities to review state requirements carefully. Some states provide leeway for local decisions, even within a mandate. For example, North Carolina law requires school districts to provide abstinence-only-until-marriage programs. Individual districts can decide, however, to provide a more comprehensive program if they hold a community forum and make the curricula available for review by the public for a specified amount of time. Other states provide leeway by allowing abstinence-only- until-marriage programs to cover contraception in the context of marriage.

The School Board

In almost all communities, the school board is involved in decisions about sexuality education. Among other things, the school board sets district policy and approves curricula, textbooks, pamphlets, and videos.

Typically, school board members are elected, so it is important to pay close attention to local elections. While some school board members have a strong background in education, others are often concerned community members with little experience in education and school administration.

The School Health Advisory Committee

Many districts have created special advisory committees to review the materials used in school health and sexuality education courses. Most often these committees make recommendations to the school board which the board can either accept or reject. The committee members are usually appointees or volunteers. Teachers, clergy, public health officials, parents, and students may serve on such advisory committees.

The Superintendent, Principal, District Curriculum Coordinator, and Staff

Although they do not set district policy, superintendents, principals, and other school administrators have some control over the content and methods used in their schools and classrooms. In the end, they are responsible for how policies on sexuality education are enforced.

Teachers

Teachers remain the only people within this hierarchy who have daily direct contact with students, and, as such, they are highly influential in decisions about curriculum, materials, activities, and classroom discussions.

To find out more about how decision are made in local school districts, visit the National School Boards Association’s website at http://www.nsba.org