Last month, the MA Board of Elementary and Secondary Education did something they hadn’t done since last century: they made long overdue updates to the state’s sex ed curriculum framework.
That’s right: they had last revised it in 1999. For years, people have been calling for updates to the curriculum so that schools offer sex education that is comprehensive, medically accurate, LGBTQ-inclusive, and consent-informed.
Because of the advocacy of people like you, the new curriculum framework is much stronger, but we can and must do better for your young people.
That’s why the Healthy Youth Act (H.544 / S.268) is still so important.
The Healthy Youth Act would provide minimum standards with which school districts that teach sex ed must comply and contains critical provisions around data collection so that we know what districts are doing.
We can’t wait another two decades for the next update to the health education curriculum, and the Healthy Youth Act establishes a process for routine updates.
Earlier this week, the Joint Committee on Education heard testimony about this and other bills about school curricula. And if they haven’t already, they need to hear from you.
Can you write to the Committee about the importance of comprehensive sex ed and urge them to swiftly advance the Healthy Youth Act?