Gov. Mike Dunleavy announced a bill Tuesday that would raise parents’ approval needed to provide sexual education and also alter students’ names or pronouns at the school.
If it is approved by the Legislature students will need their parents’ consent prior to taking a sex-education program or joining an club or program that deals with sexuality and gender.
“There is never an instance that a parent takes their children to school and then the child returns talking about what they learned at school, which could be sensitive or infringe on parent’s values,” Dunleavy said at the press conference on Tuesday.
The bill will oblige school districts to segregate the bathroom and locker room for students facilities by biological sex , rather than gender identity. It would also allow the option of single-stall restrooms or implement other procedures to deal with “the physical security and privacy of students who use bathrooms and locker rooms,” according to Dunleavy’s office.
Parents also have to sign a written consent form to students to alter their names or pronouns in school.
Anchorage Democratic Senator. Loki Tobin chairs the Senate Education Committee. She warned that the bill could cause more feelings of isolation in LGBTQ students.
The span style=”font-weight 400 ;”>”They are likely to be our most vulnerable youth In many cases the public school they attend is the most secure place they can be” She said. “It’s where they’ll have a trustworthy adult who accepts them for the person they are. It’s the place where they can be identified with their proper name and the proper pronouns, and the place where they are able to become an adult. .”
Dunleavy has denied that the bill is aimed at transgender and queer youth. In fact, he claimed that it’s intended to improve the rights of parents and to improve the transparency of schools.
The span style=”font-weight 400 ;”>”This isn’t targeted at anyone,” he said. “This is really about reaffirming parental rightsand parents are entitled to be aware of what their children are learning in school. .”
Dunleavy has also introduced a bill to improve retention and recruitment for teachers by providing full-time teachers with an annual salary for the three years to come. The amount could be $5,000, $10,000 , or $15,000, depending of the area, largest payments being given to teachers from the most remote regions.
