MAP Bill Tracker
For more information, check the MAP Advocate, MAP Action Agenda, News and Views, and MAP Facts.
Restore Minnesota's Health
Education High School Graduation Requirement
Summary, Status,
Action You Can Take and Read
More
Updated:
September 19, 2006
Summary: In 2003 when the Governor and Minnesota Legislature quickly swept away the Profiles in Learning graduation standards, under huge pressure by social conservatives, they replaced the old standards with some new ones. The new ones identify "required" content areas and "elective" content areas. Health and Physical Education were put in the "elective areas." Cutting to the chase, while local school districts are required to establish their own standards for the elective areas, they only apply to grades 9 through 12 and will vary widely from district to district. As funding for public schools continues to be cut, more and more districts will be under financial pressure to offer less and less in the way of health education.
So, where will something like comprehensive family life and sexuality education actually get taught? Who will BE in the schools to teach about things HIV and STD prevention, as currently mandated in the schools? Face it: If it's not required for graduation, then it is less of a priority and the first to be subject to budget cuts.
Add to this, funding for the K-12 HIV/STD regional
training sites that were located in Brainerd, Winona, Grand Rapids, Park
Rapids and Hopkins fell victim to the "no new taxes" budget
axe in 2003. The funding for these sites were the primary state dollars
available to help school districts implement the K-12 HIV/STD curriculum
requirement. Now, even this resource is gone [while the state continues
to pour state and increased federal dollars into abstinence-only programs
for schools -- such as ENABL, that don't work].
Status: MAP and Sex Ed for Life - MN support the work of MAHPERD [Minnesota Association for Health, Physical Education, Recreation and Dance] to secure reinstatement of the health education graduation requirement. [etc]
Rep. Connie Bernardy (DFL-Fridley) and Sen. David Tomassoni (DFL-Chisolm) have introduce HF 1931 and SF 1882 to reinstate the health and physical education graduation standard. MAP has signed on to be part of a coalition of youth and health advocacy groups to support passage of the Tomassoni/Bernardy bill. The bill was heard in the Senate Education Policy committee on March 4. The committee decided to refer the proposal to the K-12 budget committee which will consider including it in an omnibus education bill to be crafted later during the legislative session. The proposal has not had a hearing in the House, where the Education Committee leadership has indicated there may not be enough time to even have a discussion about this important education and public health concern.
Update: April 5, 2004 Reinstatement of the Health and Physical Education requirement has been included in both the Senate Omnibus Education bill approved by the E-12 Education Committee and the in the House Omnibus Education bill. Rep. Bernardy (DFL-Fridley) and Rep. Sertich (DFL-Chisholm) introduced a floor amendment to include the language in the omnibus E-12 education bill that passed with bipartisan support on a 94-36 vote.
1. Keep informed. Check the current issue of the MAP Advocate to find out what's happening.
2. Contact Rep. Benardy and Sen. Tomassoni Thank them for introducing HF 1931 and SF 1882.
3. Contact your legislators. Send an email or make a phone call to your State Senator and State Representative to let them know you want to have the health education graduation requirement reinstated.
Read More:
MAP Advocate
MAP Action Agenda
MAP Facts
HF 1931 - Authors, Status and Bill Text
SF 1882 - Authors, Status and Bill Text
Bill promotes physical -- not fiscal -- fitness in school Duluth News Tribune [March 4, 2004]
Editorial: Kids' fitness/State should require PE in school Star Tribune [March 4, 2004]
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Last Updated:
Friday, March 30, 2007
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