By Dave Fidlin
Correspondent
As with all school districts across the state, educators in this area must adhere to changes in state law as they crop up.
Some of the more recent changes were discussed by school leaders at a meeting held in Waterford last month.
Chris Joch, superintendent of the Waterford Graded School District, described this year as “one of the most ambitious legislative sessions” while meeting with fellow leaders at a recent joint meeting held between school and municipal officials.
“There’s been quite a bit of educational reform during an ambitious year,” Joch said. “It extends beyond just collective bargaining.”
Joch outlined some of the recent changes that were adopted or under discussion at the state level in mid-March. Among them: tweaks to how human growth and development curriculum can be delivered, the possibility of credit being offered for participation in athletics and loosened restrictions for medication dispensing at high schools.
“The legislators and schools have put into motion a lot of things that schools are going to have to respond to,” Joch said. “Awareness of these changes will be important as we move forward.”
In the case of human growth and development, the Wisconsin Assembly recently passed a bill that focuses on curriculum within the subject area, which primarily addresses sex education. Gov. Scott Walker signed the changes into law last week.
State law had indicated that human growth and development instruction had to include information on a number of topics, including gender identity, body image, parenting, puberty and contraceptives. Those elements are no longer required, and abstinence-only curriculum is permissible in schools across the state.
In the road ahead, local elected officials and school administrators will have to stay on top of other changes at the state level, including one of the more scrutinized issues currently under review in Madison.
The methods used to evaluate teachers are expected to change in the aftermath of Walker’s Act 10 legislation, although specifics might not materialize for a few years.
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