RALEIGH – Last week, the North Carolina Senate passed Senate Bill 49, the “Parents’ Bill of Rights.” The legislation affirms parental rights in education and creates a new benchmark for transparency in public schools.
The “Parents’ Bill of Rights” supports a strong partnership between parents and educators and prioritizes the safety of students. The bill strengthens parents’ rights to know what is being taught in their child’s classroom and be aware of their child’s well-being while at school. It fosters cooperation between parents and educators by increasing transparency and communication in schools.
Senator Benton Sawrey (R-Johnston) was a co-sponsor of the bill.
“Last week’s vote represents my commitment to putting parents in the driver’s seat of their child’s education.” Senator Sawrey said. “This is commonsense legislation that ensures parents are not shut out of the classroom and appropriately centers the responsibility of the child’s well-being with their family.”
With concerns over the state of education rising, the “Parents’ Bill of Rights” includes several measures that strengthen the relationship between parents and schools.
The bill:
– Provides a pathway for parents to request materials related to in-class instruction.
– Notifies parents of the health services offered at their child’s school at the beginning of each school year.
– Notifies parents of changes in the name or pronoun used by their child at school.
– Notifies parents of any changes in services or monitoring of their child’s mental, emotional, or physical health.
– Informs parents of their legal rights and responsibilities relating to their child’s education.
– Codifies several rights parents have in education, including seeking medical or religious exemptions from immunization requirements and to have their child evaluated for an academically or intellectually gifted program, or for identification as a child with a disability.
Senate Bill 49 also sets standards for age-appropriate instruction for our youngest students and prevents schools from withholding information relevant to a child’s well-being. The bill prohibits instruction on gender identity, sexual activity, or sexuality in grades K-4, and requires schools to notify parents of any official changes in the name or pronoun of a student, given there are no credible concerns about the child’s safety if a parent is notified. This bill would not ban a student from talking about their unique family structure or asking a question.
The bill now goes to the N.C. House of Representatives for consideration.
The real solution is to keep the government OUT of our schools… then we don’t need half-hearted measures like this. It is time to END public education. Give everyone vouchers and let them choose the private school of their choice, or home school. We want LESS government — not more!
Who is paying to put all students into private schools? The government?
The voucher program is already a huge success. Combine that with the reduction in cost of not having to maintain schools or infrastructure, and it’s a win-win for everyone!
So these private schools will have no say who attends their schools because parents get to choose which school they send their child to? If not, how do we make sure schools don’t reject students based on zip code or race or any other reason? I can’t foresee any issues with that. Will be bussing and lunch still be provided?
Maybe if we weren’t taxed into poverty, we could afford private schools? There’s always the homeschool option!
Yes! Let parents choose the school that teaches the history they prefer. The real version or the white-washed version that uses Disney’s Song of The South as proof that it really wasn’t THAT bad.
Vouchers are a convenient way for parents to segregate schools.
This is a can of worms 🐛 First and foremost, parents should be involved in their child’s learning way before they start school and throughout the time they are students. I can see this can of worms creating BIG problems. One parent will complain about this, another parent will complain about that, and a third about something else. Constantly taking valuable learning time away from students. I not saying parents shouldn’t have a say, it should be done before the school year starts so that it doesn’t turn into a cluster **** merry-go-round for the entire school year. Once you agree to it before the school year starts parents should have to live with it for that school year, and address it before the next year. This is what results when we have politicians telling other people how to do their jobs, Heck they’re not even smart enough to do their own.
More transparency in education is very welcome. The parents should be informed about thier children’s environment that they are FORCED to attend for a major portion of their childhood. Vouchers sounds ideal, it gives parents more control over the educational environment in which their children are molded.
1/3 of parents are capable of making smart decisions about their child’s education. 1/3 prefer to be passive about their child’s education and leave it in the hands of educators that know better than they do. 1/3 are too stupid to manage their kids’ education and this will be the vocal bunch empowered by this bill.