Virginia Regulatory Town Hall View Comments

Department of Education

State Board of Education

Guidance Document Change: During the 2020 Virginia General Assembly session, legislation passed requiring individualized education program teams to consider the need for certain age-appropriate and developmentally appropriate instruction. House Bill 134 required the Virginia Department of Education (VDOE) to establish guidelines for individualized education program (IEP) teams to utilize when developing IEPs for children with disabilities to ensure that IEP teams consider the need for age-appropriate and developmentally appropriate instruction related to sexual health, self-restraint, self-protection, respect for personal privacy, and personal boundaries of others. The legislation also requires each local school board, in developing IEPs for children with disabilities, in addition to any other requirements established by the Board, to ensure that IEP teams consider such guidelines. The purpose of this document is to provide school divisions a framework for the development of operating guidelines tailored to local resources and service delivery models. This document does not replace any federal or state regulations. Additionally, this information is provided to assist IEP teams in considerations for instructional planning and implementation in these critical areas.

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5/26/21 8:45 am

Commenter: Adrienne Griggs, SexEdVA

Youth deserve positive shame-free sexual health education

Much of the current language used in the guidelines imply that sexual health education is primarily needed to prevent abuse both of and by young people with disabilities. While consent and boundaries are important aspects of sexual health education for all people, harm reduction and prevention is not the only need. Alone it will not prevent abuse and harm and may actively perpetuate harmful stereotypes of the individuals it is meant to inform.
All students deserve access to comprehensive sex education. The DSHN staff at SexEdVA highly recommend additional guidelines for choosing comprehensive educational resources so that students can access information to make informed decisions about healthy and fulfilling romantic and sexual relationships. Students should be able to access information on identity, healthy relationships, affirmative consent, healthcare, STI prevention, pregnancy prevention, and methods of protection that are medically-accurate and non-judgmental.
In the current guidelines, a student or parent may opt out of this discussion entirely. We encourage instead that young people and their families be directed to resources for conducting these conversations in safe and inviting ways rather than allowing the first step to be to opt out. We recognize that talking about sexual health can be uncomfortable or unfamiliar and that is all the more reason to talk about it.

CommentID: 98757