Controversial Sex Ed Curriculum Tackled By Lacey School Board

LACEY, NJ — The Lacey Township Board of Education addressed the controversial comprehensive health and physical education curriculum that has many parents across New Jersey angered.

The standards that people are focused on involve teachings of gender identity and sexual education to younger children. Officials said the documents are only models and not requirements.

Read More: Here Are The Facts On How Murphy's Ed Department Changed Learning Standards For Sexual Education And Gender Identity

William Zylinski, assistant superintendent for curriculum and instruction, assured parents that the Lacey school board is "very sensitive" to the topics and controversy at a recent board of education meeting. However, Zylinski said that they have not begun planning the sex education curriculum for the next school year.

Since Gov. Murphy "basically put a pause" on these standards, Zylinski said, the school board is waiting and listening to see what the government's next move is. They want to wait until the state releases more guidance before they decide on anything. He stressed that "timing is everything," but since curriculum discussions for Lacey won't begin until summer, he said there is nothing to talk about yet.

Superintendent Dr. Vanessa Clark said that she met with the county to discuss the standards. She emphasized that "our parents need to know how to opt out" of the curriculum, as the controversial ideas are sprinkled throughout the entirety of it instead of in one section. Clark said this is "very challenging to public schools" and that if these standards remain, she will develop a way to opt out.

Clark added that the board has more questions than answers right now.

Lacey resident and parent Ann Marie Leiter said she would be opting her child out if the board follows the standards. She said that what the school teaches should be in line with what she teaches at home.

Members of the board shared their feelings towards the standards, which were mostly negative as well.

Salvatore Armato was unhappy with the standards. He said that to him, it "sounds like the state is trying to hide something."

"This isn't sex ed," Armato said. "This is anal sex! Vaginal sex!" He added that he could not understand why a second grader has to put on a condom. However, there is nothing in the documents that mentions this.

Armato added that they need to be proactive and refuse to accept these standards in Lacey. "We're allowing the state and federal government to kill the nucleus of a family," he said.

Board member Kim Klaus agreed that what some of Armato described was inappropriate, saying "I don't think anyone on the board would put that in the curriculum."

Her next comments were aimed directly towards Armato, adding "We do teach sex, Sal. We do teach all kinds of sex in the school."

The board agreed that they were not pleased with the standards. Frank Palino, school board president, said that he was "not really a big fan of this."

"I don't think any of us are a real big fan," Palino said.

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