Clergy Testimony for Health Education Standards
Below you will find examples of testimony:
Affirmation of the Proposed State Health Education Standards
Public Comment to Nebraska State Board of Education
May 7, 2021
Submitted by Rev. Chris Jorgensen, Omaha, Nebraska
Good morning. My name is Rev. Chris Jorgensen. I am an ordained United Methodist pastor, and I live in Omaha. I am not a teacher or a health professional, though I am deeply grateful for the many health teachers, nurses, psychologists, community health educators and others who wrote and consulted on the proposed Nebraska Health Education Standards. I want to thank the Board for ensuring that these standards were written by experts and based on scientific research.
I am the mother of a child in the Omaha Public School system. I am sure the School Board is aware (but perhaps not everyone here today is aware) that each time my child has had the opportunity to receive education on human growth and development, I have been invited to exclude her from whatever part of that education I choose. I filled out a little yellow form, and I could have chosen to pull her out of any section of that class I desired. I understand that under the new standards, parents will continue to have that choice. In fact, I also understand that entire districts will also have the choice whether to implement the new state standards or not.
Personally, I am grateful that my child has had the opportunity to learn about the reality of 21st-century life in her health classes, and I think every child should have the opportunity to learn about those realities. If parents want to exclude their children from learning about reality, that is their decision; however, they should not make that decision for me, my child, and the many people who do not hold their particular kind of religious values.
I also have religious values. Like our friends speaking against these standards, I also think we have a responsibility to protect Nebraska children. I would do anything to keep my child safe, too. But, as a Christian, my responsibility is not just to my own child. When I say “protect Nebraska children,” I mean all Nebraska children, not just those who fit traditional gender norms and not just the straight kids. Research has shown that LGBTQ children are at risk of bullying and rejection which leads to high levels of attempted and completed suicide.** The proposed standards protect our rainbow Nebraska children by naming the reality of various family types, and by acknowledging the existence of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender people.
The elementary standards starting in Grade 3 simply say, “Demonstrate ways to promote dignity and respect for people of all genders, gender expressions, and gender identities, including other students, their family members, and members of the school community.” All this is asking for is dignity and respect. While it is a shame that such human decency even needs saying, until all people are actually treated with dignity and respect, inclusion of this kind of education can be truly lifesaving for Nebraska’s LGBTQ kids.
So, thank you, School Board, for being in the business of protecting all Nebraska children. I ask you to stand firm on the inclusion and affirmation of all Nebraskans of all gender identities and sexual orientations in the proposed health education standards.
** https://www.thetrevorproject.org/resources/preventing-suicide/facts-about-suicide/
TWO MINUTE VERSION
Good morning. My name is Rev. Chris Jorgensen. I am an ordained United Methodist pastor, and I live in Omaha. I want to thank the Board for ensuring that the proposed health education standards were written by teachers and health professionals and based on scientific research.
I am the mother of a child in the Omaha Public School system. I am sure the School Board is aware that each time my child has had the opportunity to receive education on human growth and development, I have been invited to exclude her from whatever part of that education I choose. I filled out a little yellow form, and I could have chosen to pull her out of any section of that class. I understand that under the new standards, parents will continue to have that choice.
Personally, I am grateful that my child has had the chance to learn about the reality of 21st-century life in her health classes, and I think every child should have that opportunity. If parents want to exclude their children from learning, that is their decision; however, they should not make that decision for me, my child, and the many people who do not hold their particular kind of religious values.
I also have religious values. Like our friends speaking against these standards, I also think we have a responsibility to protect Nebraska children. I would do anything to keep my child safe, too. But, as a Christian, my responsibility is not just to my own child. When I say “protect Nebraska children,” I mean all Nebraska children. The proposed standards protect our rainbow Nebraska children from the risk of bullying and suicide.
…
The elementary standards starting in Grade 3 simply say, “Demonstrate ways to promote dignity and respect for people of all genders, gender expressions, and gender identities, including other students, their family members, and members of the school community.” All this is asking for is dignity and respect. This kind of education can be truly lifesaving for Nebraska’s LGBTQ kids.
So, thank you, School Board, for being in the business of protecting all Nebraska children. I ask you to stand firm on the inclusion and affirmation of all Nebraskans of all gender identities and sexual orientations in the proposed health education standards.
Thank you.
Affirmation of the Proposed State Health Education Standards
Public Comment on Health Standards
April 2, 2021
Rev. Debra McKnight, Urban Abbey United Methodist Church
1026 Jackson St.Omaha, NE 68102
Hello I am Reverend Debra McKnight the Founding Pastor at Urban Abbey United Methodist Church in Omaha’s Old Market. I am here to voice my wholehearted support for your work on these health standards. I am grateful that you have worked with experts and created age-appropriate strategies for vital conversations that will keep children safe and honor their whole person.
I wish I was not here but I am here because there are clergy and faith based organizations like Nebraska Catholic Conference and the Nebraska Families Alliance seeking to use their voice to limit, control and hinder this work. Their fear mongering and extremism suggesting these standards “sexualize” young people embarrasses me as a Christian. Their attempt to control people’s bodies, identities and being within but especially beyond their own congregations astounds me and is an absolute denial of real needs and real pain in our real world. A nostalgic vision of relationships, sex and identity, that never was good for all people, cannot guide our choices around how we prepare young people for a future with hope. These regressive strategies are exactly why my freshman year of college at UNL a young woman and her boyfriend tried to deliver a baby in my dorm all by themselves. Failing to give young people the information they need to make the best choices they can creates trauma and does not give every child a fair chance at a good life. This curriculum makes young people safer, healthier and honors each person as sacred. I would remind you that these organizations do not need to be consulted or appeased in the process of making or amending Public School Standards.
In addition to my Masters in Divinity from SMU, I hold a Masters of Education in Curriculum and Instruction. During my time in Doane’s Graduate Education program, I completed a culminating project around Heterosexist language in the Secondary School Climate. It is vital that young people see images of families beyond a Dad and Mom, it is vital that students at every grade level understand gender identity and gender expression so they do not internalize a sense that something is wrong with them as they grow and develop. I dream of a world where each student feels safe and empowered.
To conclude, I am a parent and these are the exact conversations I want my 1st grade daughter to be having with caring, professional educators. At home we are proactive about the exact conversations contained in the First Grade Standards, whether it is the standard about brushing your teach and eating healthy food or the standard about some families having two moms. My Husband and I have these conversations with her because research shows that if she knows her anatomy and understands safe or unsafe touch proactively she will be safer.
Thank you for helping make a world were every young person is safe, beloved, and empowered to be exactly who they are woven together by God to be.