Please only sign this petition if you are a resident of Bordentown City, Bordentown Township, or Fieldsboro, New Jersey.

Protect Our Youth from Age-Inappropriate Sexual Content

            We, the undersigned, do hereby state that we are Residents of Bordentown and are concerned with the potential adoption of the 2020 NJSLS Health and Physical Education Curriculum.  We request that the Bordentown Regional School District adopt a policy rejecting these standards and take other steps necessary to keep topics of a sexual nature out of our schools.

Protect Our Youth from Age-Inappropriate Sexual Content

Please read below for more information about this standard and what our district can do about it.

                  Thank you for your time and consideration in reading the following.  I wanted to provide a comprehensive overview of the 2020 Health and Physical Education NJSLS standards which were adopted by the New Jersey Board of Education in June of 2020.  These standards contain material that is age-inappropriate and inappropriate for the school setting.  The attached petition will be presented to the Bordentown Regional School District Board of Education at their regular public meeting.

I first would like to provide more detail on why parents are concerned once they learn about the standard.  Everything I am listing here can be found directly on the state of NJ’s website : https://www.nj.gov/education/cccs/2020/2020%20NJSLS-CHPE.pdf  The below list represents some of the main concerns: 

By the End of Second Grade:  (Children between the ages of 5 and 7)

·         Pg. 27 2.1.2.PGD.5: List medically accurate names for body parts, including the genitals.

·         Pg. 28 2.1.2.SSH.2: Discuss the range of ways people express their gender and how gender-role stereotypes may limit behavior.

                By the End of Fifth Grade:  (Children between the ages of 7 and 10)

·         Pg. 30 2.1.5.PGD.4: Explain common human sexual development and the role of hormones (e.g., romantic and sexual feelings, masturbation, mood swings, timing of pubertal onset).

·         Pg. 30 2.1.5.PGD.1: Explain the relationship between sexual intercourse and human reproduction.

·         Pg. 30 2.1.5.PGD.2: Explain the range of ways pregnancy can occur (e.g., IVF, surrogacy).

·         Pg. 31 2.1.5.SSH.2: Differentiate between sexual orientation and gender identity.

                By the End of Eighth Grade:  (Children between the ages of 10 and 13)

·         Pg. 33 2.1.8.PP.1: Describe pregnancy testing, the signs of pregnancy, and pregnancy options, including parenting, abortion, and adoption.

·         Pg. 34 2.1.8.SSH.9: Define vaginal, oral, and anal sex.

Again, these are just some of the concerning topics.  I respectfully ask you, if we were speaking about your child learning these standards, would you want these topics covered and potentially integrated into your child’s school day, or covered by you as the parent?

At a recent board meeting I addressed the board with these concerns. I have also sent them an email similar to this letter not just bringing up problems but offering solutions.  The solution I proposed was for the board to consider adopting a resolution barring this portion of the standard and these topics from our curriculum.  By signing the attached petition you are voicing your support and insuring that your voice will be heard. 

The protection argument:  I have heard from a few that the spirit of this standard is for a child’s protection.  One example was if a child was put on the stand in court they would be able to correctly identify body parts.  While I wholeheartedly agree with protecting every child, I strongly disagree that the way to protect the few is to infringe on the rights and innocence of the many.  As a society we do not issue food stamps to every citizen to ensure that no one goes hungry.  We allow choices in driving even though a few individuals will make bad choices behind the wheel.  We CAN NOT force these discussions on every child.  It crosses the line between the rights of the families and the responsibilities of the school.

 The Opt-In or Opt-Out debate:  Another argument for allowing this curriculum to be implemented is that parents have the right to opt out.  For starters, as a result of COVID and the ever increasing demands on everyone, everywhere, a lot of parents aren’t even aware that this is occurring.  As soon as they learn of it they respond with, ”My child will not be taught that.”  Can we confidently say that every parent will even know that they need to, or have the means to opt their child out?  As for the Opt-In scenario, how do we insure that these topics do not make their way into the classroom except for in the predefined opt in time?  I have met with our superintendent to discuss this topic.  During that meeting we discussed was how the curriculum is deployed after approval.  She mentioned, and I agree, that learning best takes place when topics are intertwined to build a comprehensive picture illustrating how to exercise all of the topics and skills being instructed.  Given this delivery method I do not see a way to insure that the boundaries can be maintained for any parent who opts in or out.

 Lastly, I’d like to point out that this idea is not mine, it’s not unique, and we’re not trailblazing.  Several schools in the state have already done this.  Below are the school district boards who have already voted on and implemented this suggestion:

·         Montague Twp.  Reviewed and adopted 6-8-22.

·         Garwood School District.  Voted not to adopt 5-17-22. 

·         Jackson Twp.  See information presented to the community on 4-27-22.

·         Sussex-Wantage Regional School District Reviewed and adopted 6-30-22.                

 

Thanks again for your time, consideration, and for taking the time to read this.