N.J. school district will teach new sex ed standards, but on last day of classes – NJ.com

A Morris County school district is telling parents that new lessons next year stemming from the state’s updated sex education standards will be limited to the last day of classes.

East Hanover Superintendent Natalee Bartlett outlined the K-8 district’s plans in a letter Tuesday, amid an ongoing statewide controversy over the standards.

“Please know that we will not change our current lesson-planning or curriculum offerings based on the updated standards,” Bartlett wrote in a letter she provided Friday to NJ Advance Media.

The district intends to “loosely interpret the standards,” she wrote.

“As a district, we have decided that we will incorporate the new standards into one single classroom period (35 minutes) of instruction for grades 2, 5, and 8 at the end of the year. We also understand that children who are in the classes might want to share some information with other children. Therefore, the periods will occur on the last day of school next year (2023) to minimize the sharing of information,” Bartlett added.

Bartlett alluded in her letter to pushback over the updated standards, which were adopted in 2020 by the state Board of Education and will take effect in in September, and noted the possibility of revisions.

It was sent one week after Gov. Phil Murphy directed the state Department of Education to review sex education standards adopted two years ago after the guidelines sparked an uproar among some parents and Republican officials.

The standards offer guidance on when students in New Jersey should be instructed on sexual orientation, gender identity, anatomy and other topics.

Bartlett wrote that the school district “wholeheartedly supports that parents/guardians should serve as the primary sexuality educators for their children.”

“Further, we also believe that the state is acknowledging its overreach, and has begun distancing itself from some of the new standards. It would not surprise us if many of these topics are altered prior to the new school year. However, as we agree that some topics may be uncomfortable for students, parents and guardians, we want to remind parents/guardians that they have the option of excluding their children from any portion of sexuality education instruction if it is in conflict with conscience, moral, or religious beliefs,” Bartlett wrote.

Reached by phone Friday, Bartlett said the district is not defying anything that is required.

“We’re not bucking the standards,” Barlett said.

Her reason for writing the letter, she added, was to explain the district’s approach and to remind parents of their right to remove their child from sex education instruction.

“It’s not for everybody. They can certainly opt out of the lessons,” she said.

In her letter, Bartlett wrote that the new lessons “will be co-taught by our (physical education) teachers and school nurses and will be announced well in advance so that parents/guardians have ample time to inform schools” on whether their children will attend.

“We intend to loosely interpret the standards and apply simple and succinct definitions to terms. We are not going to discuss these terms in depth or provide instructional guides or materials. Those students who are not attending will be provided with alternate activities during these instructional periods,” Bartlett write.

She concluded by noting that additional information will be provided to parents prior to the start of the 2022-23 school year, and wrote that those with “any additional concerns regarding the state-mandated curriculum” should contact Murphy’s office.

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Rob Jennings may be reached at rjennings@njadvancemedia.com.