A coalition of reproductive health, LGBTQ, sexual violence prevention, and civil rights groups sent a letter to New York lawmakers urging them to move forward with a comprehensive sex education bill.
The legislation would require schools to provide age-appropriate, research-based, and LGBTQ-inclusive sex education in every grade, according to Albany Times-Union. The legislation would have the Education Department create a model for sex education curriculum for grades K-12.
The state currently requires one semester of health education in middle school and one in high school, which may or may not include sex education. Advocates say curriculum guidelines have not been updated since 1996.
The proposed legislation would not be a curriculum mandate, but rather would require the state to establish curriculum guidelines for schools to then develop their own curricula. Curriculum decisions are made at the local level in New York.
Advocates are hoping Gov. Hochul includes the legislation in the state 2022-23 budget, which is due on April 1.
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