After a roughly 10-hour meeting lasting into the early morning hours of Thursday, the Fremont Unified School District Board of Education voted to not offer sexual education curriculum this year for students between fourth and sixth grades.
The board, which fielded responses from scores of parents throughout the meeting, came to the conclusion that they do not believe that the curriculum in question was compliant with state law.
One board trustee said he believes a majority of parents want sexual education to be taught to their children, but the issue came down to what specifically should be discussed in the classroom.
The district had been considering a curriculum called Three R's, referring to rights, respect and responsibility. That curriculum contained some topics some parents believed were too explicit and not age appropriate for fourth-, fifth- and sixth-graders.
One parent thought the proposed discussion of sexual orientation and gender identity could erode family values. Mother Kate Amon did not agree, and said she was disappointed with the board's decision.
"I thought there was a lot of pressure from a vocal but misguided group of parents that think that keeping their kids uninformed will somehow protect their child's innocence," she said.
While sexual education lessons are off the table this year for fourth-, fifth- and sixth-graders, the district will continue to offer a compliant version for students between seventh and ninth grades.
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The board did decide to create a task force to craft curriculum that would be compliant for students in fourth through sixth grades.
