As you may have heard, the Board of Education voted to table a curriculum change adoption on Monday evening after hearing concerns from parents. The proposed change is for the district’s high school health course and related to mental health topics including mental health disorders, depression, anxiety, suicide prevention, the impact of technology on mental health, cyberbullying, and the increased risk of anxiety, depression, and suicide for students identifying as LGBTQ+. The proposed change was requested by the district’s health teachers with input from the Howell High School Lighthouse group. It was reviewed by the high school’s School Improvement Team, the district’s Curriculum Committee, and the Instruction, Innovation, and Improvement Board Subcommittee.
The district selected the high school health course to incorporate these topics based on a recent survey of parents regarding the district’s human reproductive health curriculum. The district utilized a survey provided by the Michigan Department of Education and shared the survey with all district parents in two editions of each school’s parent newsletter. The survey, which closed in April, was taken by approximately 7 percent or 374 of the district’s parents. This response rate falls within the average survey response rate of 5 to 30 percent. To view the full survey results, please visit https://bit.ly/3vCSU7A.
Due to the sensitive nature of these topics, a letter will be emailed and physically mailed to families of students enrolled in the course to explain their options of opting out of lessons or the course as a whole. While the Michigan Department of Education requires students to take a health course, parents do have the option to have their child enroll in an alternate course using a personal curriculum plan. Information on this is shared with high school parents during the registration process.
District staff will be sharing more information on this proposal at the June 28 Board Meeting. The Board of Education will not take action on this proposal at this meeting.
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