Alberta school boards advocate to keep opt-out sexual health education

Alberta school boards say the provincial government should retain an opt-out system for sexual health education in schools, as politicians debate a bill that would require families to opt students in.

In a resolution passed Monday, school trustees belonging to the Alberta School Boards Association (ASBA) also said they should continue to set policies around gender-diverse students, not the provincial government.

Trustees worry that an opt-in system for sex education will result in fewer students learning from the government-approved health curriculum, ASBA president Marilyn Dennis said in an interview.

"It is important that our young people understand how their bodies work, what their body parts are called, how to create babies and how not to create babies, how to avoid getting a sexually transmitted infection," Dennis said.

The trustees are pushing back against changes contained in Bill 27, which would require schools to get permission from parents or guardians in advance of every lesson on human sexuality, gender identity or sexual orientation.

Should the bill become law, Alberta would be the first province or territory to require parents to opt students in, rather than including all students as the default.

Should it pass, the Education Amendment Act would also require schools to tell a student's parents or guardians if a student younger than 18 wants to be addressed by a different name or pronoun at school.

Although students who are 16 or 17 could use their chosen name and pronouns, school staff would still inform their parents.

The bill passed second reading in the legislature on Tuesday afternoon, and must go through two more stages of debate before it can be proclaimed into law.

Dennis said schools governed by boards will adhere to the law. However, she said trustees are concerned about the administrative work required to chase down parents who haven't signed permission forms and staff will have to come up with alternative programming for students who don't have permission to participate in human sexuality lessons. 

Dennis also said she thinks it's not healthy for a student to live a double life at home and at school, and that school boards have stickhandled these delicate situations for years.

Education minister has no plans to amend bill

Trustees from Edmonton Public Schools brought the motion forward for debate at a provincial trustee meeting.

Julie Kusiek, Edmonton Public School Board chair, said in an interview Monday that elected local school boards know best how their constituents want them to handle sensitive issues, such as a trans or non-binary student wishing to change how they're identified at school.

The division's policy is to honour a student's preferred name and pronouns and work with them to disclose that preference to their family, she said.

"It's really important that students feel that they can be themselves and they feel like school is a place that they belong, that they are welcome and safe," she said.

Kusiek said if the government is listening to trustees' perspectives, members will amend the bill based on this feedback.

Education Minister Demetrios Nicolaides said in an interview Tuesday the premier has been firm about wanting opt-in sex ed.

Although the bill, as drafted, would require boards to tell parents of each upcoming lesson, they could map those lessons out in advance and seek advance permission once a year to reduce the administrative burden, Nicolaides said.

Nicolaides said the legislation on gender policies isn't a lack of faith in school boards to handle the issue, but a move to ensure a consistent provincial approach.

"A number of parents, of course, are raising concerns over what's being taught in schools, when it's being taught, what kind of material is being made available to children," he said. "We want to be responsive to the concerns that we're hearing from a large portion of Albertans."

NDP education critic Amanda Chapman said ASBA's position sends a "strong signal" the legislation is out of step with what education system leaders believe is best.

"We've got this government that's always about getting out of everyone's lanes, and they need to get out of the lane of the school boards and let them manage the needs of their own ridings, their own constituents," Chapman said.

Education funding formula review underway

School trustees also passed a motion calling on the Alberta government to increase annual grant funding proportionally to inflation.

Dennis said funding increases have not kept pace with the rising costs of utilities, gasoline, busing, and other fixed costs, let alone the rising numbers of students in urban and suburban areas.

"How you cut the pie doesn't make as much difference as how big the pie is to start with," Dennis said.

Premier Danielle Smith has said the current school funding formula is not serving growing schools well — a sentiment ballooning school boards have shared for years.

Nicolaides said review of the education funding formula is underway, and he hopes to introduce some changes in time for the February 2025 budget.