For months, a small group of concerned citizens has taken to public comment at the Santa Barbara Unified School District (SBUSD) school board and a few City Council meetings, alleging the state-mandated sexual education curriculum is indoctrinating Santa Barbara’s youth with a liberal agenda. The group has charged that one of the state-approved books teaches students to use vegetables in place of sex toys, among other outrageous claims.
The California Healthy Youth Act, approved under Assembly Bill 329 in 2016, requires school districts to provide students with “integrated, comprehensive, accurate, and unbiased comprehensive sexual health and HIV prevention education.” However, each district’s locally elected leadership chooses which curriculum and instructional resources, including textbooks, are used in that district.
There are six state-approved curricula, but any curriculum can be used as long as it meets the state requirements. SBUSD is in the process of replacing the middle school curriculum because the current textbook, Holt Decisions for Health, doesn’t meet the new requirements. The final decision will be made this winter, with input from parents.