JUNEAU, Alaska (AP) - A Senate committee heard mixed testimony Tuesday on a bill aimed at giving parents greater oversight of their children’s education.
Senate State Affairs took more than an hour of testimony on a bill sponsored by Sen. Mike Dunleavy, R-Wasilla, which would let parents opt students out of certain requirements, including testing, and require parental consent for students to participate in sex education. It also would prevent an organization that provides abortions, or volunteers affiliated with such an organization, from providing sexual education in schools.
Two Juneau teens who participate in a peer education program with oversight from Planned Parenthood said they opposed the bill. The teens visit classrooms to talk about abstinence and preventing unwanted pregnancies, healthy relationships and other issues, and base each talk on what the teacher wants and is comfortable with, said Caylea Collum, a sophomore at Juneau Douglas High School.
Others said they were also concerned that students who need sexual education the most might not have parental consent and would miss out on the information.
Many of those who testified in support of the bill were parents concerned about what their children were exposed to at school, including Sitka resident Ed Gray, who said he was uncomfortable with the material Planned Parenthood provided in Sitka schools.
Further discussion on the bill was planned for Wednesday.
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