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A resolution presented to the governing board Tuesday during a study session on comprehensive sexual education contained language that described that provision of the law as “offensiveâ€� and “shamingâ€� and has no place in ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ education policy.

While the resolution would make clear the district’s disdain for that provision because it excludes segments of the student population, TUSD says it would still comply while working toward inclusive change.

The resolution is modeled after an inclusion resolution adopted in the Phoenix Union High School District and was shared with the TUSD board by its legal counsel Julie Tolleson .

TUSD says it has worked to develop policies and practices that promote respect for diversity in the areas of gender, gender identity, race and ethnicity, languages and countries of origin, religious beliefs, family structures and status, and varying abilities.

Some ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ lawmakers have worked to get stricken from state law existing provisions prohibiting school instruction that promotes a homosexual lifestyle, portrays homosexuality as a positive alternative lifestyle or says there are safe methods for homosexual sex.

“I think it’s really important that we promote medically accurate sex education,â€� said Rep. Stefanie Mach, D-ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥, a sponsor of the bill. “And I think we need to acknowledge that there is a variety of ways that you can have safe and healthy relationships and it’s really not the government’s role to decide what those are as long as they’re medically safe and that information is accurate.â€�

The effort, however, appears to be doomed due to resistance from others in the Legislature, Mach said.

“I think these are antiquated ideas and we need to start catching up with the reality of the world and with culture,� she said.

STUDENT EFFORT

The effort to update TUSD’s sex education offerings was inspired by a group of TUSD and University of ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ students who have been attending Governing Board meetings for months, calling for effective programming.

While praising their educational experience in TUSD schools, the young advocates have criticized sex education they say is so inadequate that students often rely on Google to answer any questions of substance. That can lead to misinformation, said Grace Liatti, a ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ High Magnet School junior.

“In my own experience having taken health last year, I didn’t feel that it was impactful nor that it translated into the real world,� added University High School sophomore Deja Foxx.

The students are not only asking for medically accurate sex education, but also for curriculum that addresses the emotional aspect of sex, creating healthy relationships, understanding boundaries and respect for self and others.

“I think in any sort of meaningful, well-taught sex ed class, the lessons they learn carry on after middle school, after high school, after college and those are the best types of lessons for creating educated, intellectual, confident adults,� Liatti told the TUSD board.

A proposed policy drafted for the board’s consideration addressed those issues as well as bullying, dating violence and risk reduction surrounding unintended pregnancy, contraceptives and sexually transmitted infections.

The board did not take a vote on the proposed policy or resolution Tuesday.

Instead, a more in-depth study session is scheduled for April and approval could come in May.

In addition to changing the policy, the board would also need to approve the specific curriculum after the public has been given an opportunity for review and feedback.

The youth advocacy effort swayed board clerk Kristel Foster to join board president Adelita Grijalva in asking that the policy be reviewed.

“Hearing the testimony from students on their sex education experiences in our schools, that was concerning to me,� Foster said. “So I went and looked at what the policy says and what the law says and I think there’s room to do more than what we are and still follow the law.�

Board member Cam Juarez said he believes it is the district’s responsibility to offer comprehensive sex education but as a parent he understands the sensitive nature of the issue and recognizes the need to give parents the final say as to whether it is the kind of content they want their children exposed to.

Anna Keene, a representative for the University of ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥â€™s Voices for Planned Parenthood and a ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ High graduate, is pleased the Governing Board has heard students, especially given the state’s for teen pregnancy in the nation.

“I currently attend U of A and I have seen myself and others who have attended TUSD deal with circumstances that could have been avoided with more information through comprehensive sex ed and health programs,� she said. “I think future students can benefit from having comprehensive sex ed.�