State Education Board Expands 'Don't Say Gay' Instruction Ban
Some opponents of the rule argued that it will harm vulnerable LGBTQ youths and would take power away from local school boards.
April 20, 2023 at 01:19 PM
4 minute read
Instruction about sexual orientation and gender identity will largely be prohibited in all public-school grades after the State Board of Education approved a controversial rule change.
The rule effectively expands Florida's "Parental Rights in Education" law, a hot-button measure that passed last year and was labeled by critics as the "don't say gay" bill.
The law prohibited instruction about sexual orientation and gender identity in kindergarten through third grade and required that such instruction be "age-appropriate or developmentally appropriate" in older grades.
But the rule requires that teachers shall not "intentionally provide" instruction on sexual orientation or gender identity in fourth through 12th grades, unless such instruction is required by state academic standards or "is part of a reproductive health course or health lesson for which a student's parent has the option to have his or her student not attend."
The rule also extends the outright prohibition on such instruction to pre-kindergarten classrooms.
Teachers could face suspension or revocation of their educator certificates for violations of the rule.
Education Commissioner Manny Diaz Jr. described the change to a rule about educator conduct as bringing clarity to what is expected of teachers.
"All we are doing is, we are setting the expectations so that our teachers are clear that they are to teach to the standards," Diaz said before the board passed the rule.
But numerous critics, including representatives of LGBTQ advocacy groups, packed a Capitol meeting room to oppose the proposal.
Joe Saunders, senior political director for Equality Florida and a former state lawmaker, criticized what he called "outrageous censorship" under the "vague" new rule.
"Like the Legislature, the board has provided no definitions for what 'instruction' on sexual orientation or gender identity means, even as you stretch the impact of this terrible policy into every classroom in the state. This rule is by design a tool for curating fear, anxiety and the erasure of our LGBTQ community," Saunders said.
Other opponents of the rule argued it will harm vulnerable LGBTQ youths and would take power away from local school boards.
Diaz, speaking to reporters after Wednesday's meeting, was asked about the definition of "instruction."
"In the K-12 space, instruction is pretty clear. It has been deemed by courts that the state has complete authority, and that belongs to this board here, and we have standards. So, instruction has to coincide with standards," Diaz said.
The new rule also drew opposition from the Human Rights Campaign, which hosted a news conference in Tallahassee to oppose the rule and what the organization called a "slate of hateful anti-LGBTQ+ bills" being considered by the Legislature.
Shari Gewanter, a first-grade teacher in Leon County, was among the people who spoke at the news conference.
"Educators hold a vital role in the relationships that unfold with our students and their families. And in all the years that I've been teaching, I've felt comfortable presenting myself as I am in my classroom. Until recently. There is now fear around that," Gewanter said.
But Esther Byrd, a member of the state education board, echoed Diaz in saying the rule is an effort to provide more clear guidelines.
"I've heard a lot of complaints from parents around the state about our standards being overly broad and vague. The concern is that standards like that lead to an agenda being pushed on our impressionable young children. And we can't let that continue. So what the board is doing today is the same thing we've done for the last four years — we're providing clarity on what the students are expected to learn," Byrd said.
Meanwhile, bills moving through the Legislature (HB 1069 and SB 1320) also seek to put into state law an expanded prohibition on instruction about sexual orientation and gender identity. The measures would broaden the prohibition in law to pre-kindergarten through eighth grade.
Ryan Dailey reports for the News Service of Florida.
NOT FOR REPRINT
© 2024 ALM Global, LLC, All Rights Reserved. Request academic re-use from www.copyright.com. All other uses, submit a request to [email protected]. For more information visit Asset & Logo Licensing.
You Might Like
View AllSt. Thomas University Settles With Fired Professor Who Had Alleged Academic Freedom Violations and Discrimination
9 minute readEx-St. Thomas Univ. Law Professor Sues School Over Firing, Alleging Defamation
4 minute read'It's a Great Day to Be a Gator Lawyer': UF Takes Top Spot on Bar Exam
Trending Stories
- 1Democrats Give Up Circuit Court Picks for Trial Judges in Reported Deal with GOP
- 2Trump Taps Former Fla. Attorney General for AG
- 3Newsom Names Two Judges to Appellate Courts in San Francisco, Orange County
- 4Biden Has Few Ways to Protect His Environmental Legacy, Say Lawyers, Advocates
- 5UN Treaty Enacting Cybercrime Standards Likely to Face Headwinds in US, Other Countries
Who Got The Work
Michael G. Bongiorno, Andrew Scott Dulberg and Elizabeth E. Driscoll from Wilmer Cutler Pickering Hale and Dorr have stepped in to represent Symbotic Inc., an A.I.-enabled technology platform that focuses on increasing supply chain efficiency, and other defendants in a pending shareholder derivative lawsuit. The case, filed Oct. 2 in Massachusetts District Court by the Brown Law Firm on behalf of Stephen Austen, accuses certain officers and directors of misleading investors in regard to Symbotic's potential for margin growth by failing to disclose that the company was not equipped to timely deploy its systems or manage expenses through project delays. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Nathaniel M. Gorton, is 1:24-cv-12522, Austen v. Cohen et al.
Who Got The Work
Edmund Polubinski and Marie Killmond of Davis Polk & Wardwell have entered appearances for data platform software development company MongoDB and other defendants in a pending shareholder derivative lawsuit. The action, filed Oct. 7 in New York Southern District Court by the Brown Law Firm, accuses the company's directors and/or officers of falsely expressing confidence in the company’s restructuring of its sales incentive plan and downplaying the severity of decreases in its upfront commitments. The case is 1:24-cv-07594, Roy v. Ittycheria et al.
Who Got The Work
Amy O. Bruchs and Kurt F. Ellison of Michael Best & Friedrich have entered appearances for Epic Systems Corp. in a pending employment discrimination lawsuit. The suit was filed Sept. 7 in Wisconsin Western District Court by Levine Eisberner LLC and Siri & Glimstad on behalf of a project manager who claims that he was wrongfully terminated after applying for a religious exemption to the defendant's COVID-19 vaccine mandate. The case, assigned to U.S. Magistrate Judge Anita Marie Boor, is 3:24-cv-00630, Secker, Nathan v. Epic Systems Corporation.
Who Got The Work
David X. Sullivan, Thomas J. Finn and Gregory A. Hall from McCarter & English have entered appearances for Sunrun Installation Services in a pending civil rights lawsuit. The complaint was filed Sept. 4 in Connecticut District Court by attorney Robert M. Berke on behalf of former employee George Edward Steins, who was arrested and charged with employing an unregistered home improvement salesperson. The complaint alleges that had Sunrun informed the Connecticut Department of Consumer Protection that the plaintiff's employment had ended in 2017 and that he no longer held Sunrun's home improvement contractor license, he would not have been hit with charges, which were dismissed in May 2024. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Jeffrey A. Meyer, is 3:24-cv-01423, Steins v. Sunrun, Inc. et al.
Who Got The Work
Greenberg Traurig shareholder Joshua L. Raskin has entered an appearance for boohoo.com UK Ltd. in a pending patent infringement lawsuit. The suit, filed Sept. 3 in Texas Eastern District Court by Rozier Hardt McDonough on behalf of Alto Dynamics, asserts five patents related to an online shopping platform. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Rodney Gilstrap, is 2:24-cv-00719, Alto Dynamics, LLC v. boohoo.com UK Limited.
Featured Firms
Law Offices of Gary Martin Hays & Associates, P.C.
(470) 294-1674
Law Offices of Mark E. Salomone
(857) 444-6468
Smith & Hassler
(713) 739-1250