CALL TO ACTION: JOIN THE COALITION LETTER
Parental Rights Advocates Press NJ Leaders to Pause 2020 NJ Health & PE Standards
A coalition of advocacy organizations have collaborated to produce a concise briefing of opposition to the imposition of the 2020 Health and PE Standards passed by the New Jersey Legislature.
Special gratitude to the leadership of Jersey 1st for their significant role in propelling this effort forward through a generous investment in the distribution and development of the action page for the associated Petition.
September 13, 2022
PRESS RELEASE
For immediate release:
NEW JERSEY- Parental Rights advocates have united to ask Governor Murphy to stand down from his threats of withdrawal of funding and non-specific penalties for local Districts that resist imposition of the mandated, age-inappropriate curriculum within their unique communities. Parent and advocacy groups across the State of New Jersey have rejected the State’s recent changes to the Comprehensive Health & PE Standards that were approved in 2020 with delayed implementation requirements.
The threat of repercussions to individual school districts for noncompliance in developing and implementing the progressive curriculum is evidence of Governor Murphy’s interest in promoting the ideals of various special interest groups over respecting the rights of individuals and communities in a State with a historical tradition of home rule.
Parental Rights Advocates are urging parents and community members to do the following:
1. Sign the petition Here and tell Governor Murphy and his Administration not to withdraw funding or impose penalties for local districts that choose not to implement the recently passed updated Comprehensive Health & PE Standards.
2. Call or Write to Senator Vin Gopal and Senate President Nicholas P. Scutari to urge them to move on repealing and replacing the 2020 Health & PE Standards, and to restore parental voices in education. Senators Schepisi, Oroho, Pennacchio, Testa, Corrado, Bucco, Doherty and Durr have all offered various bills to address parental concerns. Use this letter for a sample.
Senator Vin Gopal: (732)695-3371 or SenGopal@njleg.org
Senator Nicholas Scutari: (908)587-0404 or SenScutari@njleg.org
3. Email the State Board of Education Office to urge them to delay implementation of the standards until more stakeholders have had their voices heard by the Legislature. Contact the State BOE at: stateboardoffice@doe.nj.gov.
4. Share the letter on social media by sharing the Petition site.
The full text of the letter is attached.
Via Email and Open Publication:
September 13, 2022
Governor Philip D. Murphy
New Jersey Department of Education
New Jersey State School Boards Association
New Jersey Education Association
Dear Governor Murphy,
We, the undersigned, represent over 42,000 New Jersey families across 100 parent-teacher advocacy groups. We ask you to consider the voice of ALL parents in the State and to ensure that families maintain their rightful seat at the proverbial table with regards to the education of their own children. We believe that parents should ultimately be the final voice on matters related to the education, socialization, and overall health and wellness of their minor children. We share the fundamental belief that we have never, and will never, co-parent with the government.
We applaud and support the school boards, businesses, and localities that have respected our parental choice. We anticipate and appreciate their continued support of our right to choose what is best for our children and individual families. We are asking you to not withdraw funding or impose penalties for local districts that choose not to implement the recently passed updated Comprehensive Health & PE Standards. Our specific objections to the curriculum are attached.
Threats to individual school districts for failure to incorporate new, controversial curriculum over the rights of individual communities is contrary to our tradition in New Jersey of respecting home rule. There is still time for our State government to acknowledge that it has overstepped parental boundaries. Thus, we urge you to restore our confidence in the appropriate balancing of rights of parents while still supporting our shared goal of the mental health and safety of all stakeholders.
We thank you for your careful consideration of our concerns.
Respectfully submitted by the organizations, entities and individuals noted below.
Signed,
Jersey 1st
New Jersey Project
Family Policy Alliance of New Jersey
Child Advocate Coalition, LLC
NJ Fresh Faced Schools and its 76 subsidiaries, including county-level and town
NJStandsUp
Freedom Loving Teachers of NJ
Freedom Loving Teachers of NJ & Parents Unity Group
Shielding Liberty LLC
Freedom Speaking LLC
NJ Parental Rights in Education
Innovative Parenting NJ
Unmask Montville Township
Unmask 08088
Southampton Parents Unite
Moms For Liberty-Ocean County NJ
Moms For Liberty-Morris County
Patriots for American Freedoms-Ocean County
NJ Parent-Teacher Unity in Schools
No Mask Flash Mob NJ-II
Medical Freedom Act (www.medicalfreedomact.org)
My Medical Freedom (www.mymedicalfreedom.org)
B6 Freedom Flyers
MaryBeth Carroll-Basset, APN
NJ Fresh Faced Schools and its subsidiaries, including county-level and town groups
SPECIFIC OBJECTIONS TO CURRICULUM
September 13, 2022
The New Jersey State Legislature passed updated Comprehensive Health & PE Standards in 2020, with implementation largely delayed until the 2022-2023 School Year. The legislature passed these sweeping changes to the curriculum without public debate and representative input from constituents.
We raise the following concerns and objections to these standards.
I. K-2 Standards
As to the 2020 Standards imposed upon the K-2 grade band:
• 2.1.2.PGD.5: List medically accurate names for body parts, including the genitals.
• 2.1.2.PP.1: Define reproduction.
• 2.1.2.SSH.2: Discuss the range of ways people express their gender and how gender-role stereotypes may limit behavior.
• 2.3.2PS.7: Identify behaviors that would be considered child abuse (e.g., emotional, physical, [and] sexual.)
• 2.3.2PS.8: Identify trusted adults, including family members, caregivers, and school staff, that you can talk to about situations which may be uncomfortable or dangerous (e.g., bullying, teasing, child sexual abuse.)
We oppose the concept that “gender and how gender-role stereotypes may limit behavior” is necessary by 2nd grade. We challenge your assertion that behavior is limited because of their “assigned” gender at birth, even though we presume most parents have spent their entire life telling their children that there are no limits for them based upon their gender. This conversation between teacher and child is inappropriate and unnecessary. Ironically, this concept is a throwback to a time that we no longer live in. These policies give antiquated gender identity concepts air in K-2nd grade classrooms.
We understand the importance of age-appropriate dialogue regarding emotional and physical abuse, as we would like to work to protect all children from abuse. However, we are concerned about the implementation of this concept as outlined in the legislation. How will you explain “Sexual abuse” to young children? Why are you forcing schools to burden healthy, happy children with no signs of abuse with these dark concepts? Most second grade children do not know about sex, so how will teachers introduce ‘sexual abuse’ to the classroom?
II. Upper Elementary/Middle School Standards
By the end of the 5th grade, there are standards that we believe are inappropriate for upper elementary/younger middle school children. Specifically, we are concerned with:
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).
2.1.5.PGD.5: Identify trusted adults, including family members, caregivers, school staff, and health care professionals, whom students can talk to about relationships and ask questions about puberty and adolescent health.
2.1.5.PGD.1: Explain the relationship between sexual intercourse and human reproduction.
2.1.5.PGD.2: Explain the range of ways pregnancy can occur (e.g., IVF, surrogacy).
2.1.5.SSH.1: Describe gender-role stereotypes and their potential impact on self and others.
2.1.5.SSH.2: Differentiate between sexual orientation and gender identity.
2.1.5.SSH.3: Demonstrate ways to promote dignity and respect for all people (e.g. sexual orientation, gender identity and expression, race, ethnicity, socio-economic status, differing ability, immigration status, family configuration).
These standards again tend to take the role of parents as emotional supports for their own children out of the discussion. The standards suggest that your child to find “trusted adults”, however, “parents” are not specified on that list.
The largest issue we find with the 2020 standards is the gender identity theory that is now being presented as “settled science” in public schools. The legislation introduces “gender identity” to our youngest learners. Students in 5th grade are introduced to a list of alternative genders that they may choose to adopt, during a critical time of emotional and physical development at the commencement of puberty. Children are naturally confused and concerned by the changes occurring in their bodies during puberty. The anticipated damage from introducing complex theories to an impressionable, innocent audience is easily foreseen, yet parental concerns are met with gaslighting and scorn.
The proposed Middle School standards require every school to teach:
• Details on vaginal, anal or oral sex (2.1.8.PP.2, 2.1.8.SSH.9)
• Abortion as an option without discussing the moral conflict(2.1.8.PP.1)
• Child pornography and sex trafficking (2.1.8.CHSS.2)
• How do decide when to have sex/ give consent or perceive consent to sex (2.1.8.SSH.7, 2.1.8.SSH.8)
• The difference romantic relationships and sexual partners (2.1.8.SSH.5)
• How to use a condom and STIs/HIV prevention and treatment, and how to get tested for HIV (2.1.8.SSH.10, 2.1.8.SSH.11, 2.1.8.CHSS.3, 2.1.8.CHSS.5)
• How to take care of a baby (2.1.8.PP.3, 2.1.8.PP.4, 2.1.8.PP.5).
There is discussion of sexual consent law with 7th graders, which we believe is beyond the scope of our public education system. We feel that many lessons on sexual harassment are more appropriate for adult/corporate clients.
The standards and lessons even go into family planning methods, which we believe exceeds the scope of a middle school education.
We recognize that some parents are defending the curriculum based upon their well-intentioned belief that the new standards will discourage bullying, particularly of the LGBTQ youth. Yet, as we delve into the actual text of the standards, we have concerns about protection of the identity of young women.
We are aware of the sample lessons being shared in some school districts that were developed by “Advocates for Youth”, an entity hired by the State to develop proposed lesson plans and materials to be used in the NJ classroom. These lessons unwittingly disparage and diminish women by re-defining a woman as simply a “person with a uterus’ or ‘person with a vulva’.
Parents across the State have familiarized themselves the standards below and have asked their Boards of Education and curriculum directors exactly how each District will deliver this inappropriate material to middle schoolers. Largely, Districts are developing all of the lessons plans and source materials without prior parental input or involvement until after the Boards of Education view and vote to adopt the proposed compliant curriculums. We believe parents have not yet received consistent, honest and practical explanations of how the more controversial topics will be addressed in the classroom.
So much of the 2020 Standards referenced here and the range of information that could be given to children by Grade 8 is unfit for group discussion without express boundaries and full disclosure to parents and guardians of the content and nature of the topic being presented. As such, we strongly object to forced implementation upon the local Districts.
CALL TO ACTION
It is our experience that many parents who have openly questioned the curriculum being developed to accommodate these standards have been met with avoidance, bullying and obfuscation.
We are advocating for our rights as parents and child advocates who ultimately understand the social and sexual development of our own children better than any other person or institution. We expect to retain control over when and how these difficult concepts are introduced to our children. We do not consent to substitution of the State as a surrogate parent in this regard.
As concerned parents, we do not accept the following:
1. 2020 Comprehensive Health and PE mandated standards to replace the community values of our individual Districts.
2. Actions by the Governor to threaten loss of funding to secure compliance with objectionable curriculum and protocol in our schools.
3. The removal of parents from the conversation and ultimate decision-making roles of the sexual and ethical values introduced to our children.
The key to a free and just society is equality of opportunity in education. Let’s work together to see to the end as partners in progress, not adversaries in war.
To the parents, guardians and child advocates reading this letter, we urge you to join with us to raise awareness among fellow community members to amplify this message.
Actionable items you can take:
1. Sign the petition Here and tell Governor Murphy and his Administration not to withdraw funding or impose penalties for local districts that choose not to implement the recently passed updated Comprehensive Health & PE Standards.
2. Call or Write to Senator Vin Gopal and Senate President Nicholas P. Scutari to urge them to move on repealing and replacing the 2020 Health & PE Standards, and to restore parental voices in education. Senators Schepisi, Oroho, Pennacchio, Testa, Corrado, Bucco, Doherty and Durr have all offered various bills to address parental concerns. Use this letter for a sample.
Senator Vin Gopal: (732)695-3371 or SenGopal@njleg.org
Senator Nicholas Scutari: (908)587-0404 or SenScutari@njleg.org
3. Email the State Board of Education Office to urge them to delay implementation of the standards until more stakeholders have had their voices heard by the Legislature. Contact the State BOE at: stateboardoffice@doe.nj.gov.
4. Share this letter on social media.
5. Start a Petition in your local School District to send to your School Board. For a sample, please contact Kristen Sinclair at ksinclair@newjerseyproject.org.
To learn more about the New Jersey Project, visit here
If you are so able, please visit Jersey 1st’s page to support their continued advocacy for parental rights by donating Here.