Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SATURDAY, January 15, 1994 TAG: 9401150140
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: B1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: ELIZABETH THIEL LANDMARK NEWS SERVICE
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
She withdrew Brian, now an 11th-grader at Princess Anne High in Virginia Beach, from family life education, the sex-education classes the state requires schools to teach. And she called on the School Board and City Council to do something about the classes, which she says teach kids how to have sex, not how to avoid it.
"I think a child should have sex education, because they're curious," she said. "If you don't teach them the right way, then they're going to learn the wrong way and turn something beautiful into something ugly.
"But I don't think they should be given a how-to manual."
Until now, Huffman's complaints have gone ignored.
But with a new Republican governor taking office today, parents and conservative legislators who have unsuccessfully opposed family life education since it began in the late 1980s have new inspiration.
Most are confident that George Allen will seek either to repeal the 1987 law requiring localities to have a family life education program, or use his executive power to water down the state Department of Education's regulations for how the programs must be set up.
One school board even voted in December to seek a new law releasing localities from the requirement to provide family life education.
"I know that we've got a governor who will support us," said Mary-Beth LaRock, a member of the Loudon County School Board.
Republican lawmakers said the new governor has not given them direction on the family life issue.
But Allen has opposed forcing localities to teach family life education. In 1991, as a member of the House of Delegates, he sponsored an unsuccessful attempt to temporarily lift the mandate.
But whether or how he might change family life still is unclear.
A spokesman for Allen did not return calls.
Allen's choice for secretary of education, Beverly Sgro, told state senators Thursday that she favors the program, but wants more parental involvement and more local say in what gets taught in the classes.
Del. William Mims, R-Loudoun, said he sent a letter Wednesday asking Allen to clarify his intentions on family life.
Mims said opponents of the program are not seeking to eliminate sex education.
"The concern is simply that the guidelines were so oppressive, leaving no local flexibility for when topics should be taught," he said.
"My personal view is that every locality should have a program that has the core topics that are taught . . . including sex education," he said. "But my view is that the state should not take a cookie-cutter approach."
Huffman suggests changing the rules to provide family life education only for children whose parents enroll them. All students now are enrolled automatically, with parents able to notify the school that they want them withdrawn.
That means few kids withdraw, Huffman said, stigmatizing those who do. Huffman's son was separated from his friends and placed in a class where he had to fill out work sheets for 50 minutes every day for the four years he did not participate, she said.
"For me, it was a hard decision," she said. "Do you let them pump him full of garbage, or worry about the social problems he'll have?"
The best idea, Huffman said, would be just to scrap the family life program entirely.
"I really don't think it should be taught in the schools the way it's written up now," she said.
Del. Paul Councill Jr., D-Franklin, chairman of the House Education Committee, said lawmakers probably would support any proposals to give localities and parents more say in what gets taught.
But even with a new governor, a bill to do away with family life education entirely probably wouldn't pass, he said.
"It's been pretty well documented that there are a lot of youngsters out there that don't get any of this information at home," Councill said. "I think we'd be sticking our heads in the sand."
Keywords:
GENERAL ASSEMBLY 1994
by CNB