TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — During a recent State Board of Education meeting, board members decided to move forward with pulling LGBTQ support documents from each school district to review them.
This decision came after board member Ryan Petty brought up concerns regarding the content in some of the guides.
“I would move to ask the department to collect any LGBTQ support guides given to students, teachers and staff including the Title II plans for each district, some of which I have grave concerns violate Florida law,” Petty said.
The Parental Rights in Education law, which critics have dubbed "Don’t Say Gay," prohibits classroom discussion on sexual orientation and gender identity for kindergarten through third grade.
Petty brought up a line during the meeting that he said came from a Hillsborough County guide: “It says, 'with limited exception involving the imminent fear of physical harm is never appropriate to divulge the sexual orientation of a student to a parent,'” he explained.
10 Tampa Bay has asked the school district for a copy of its guide. A representative with the district said they could not send a copy because it is currently under review. They also said their guide is for instructional staff only.
Brandon Wolf, the press secretary for Equality Florida, said these guides are frequently reviewed and updated to make sure they are in line with applicable laws. He said they are designed to provide the best possible support to students.
“It’s unfortunate that these guidelines have been put in place by these school districts to support students and very specifically students who are at higher risks of anxiety, depression and suicide, that we have a governor and department of education that don’t see eye to eye,” Wolf said.
It's unclear how long it will take for each guide to be reviewed.