Michigan Grandmother Says Opt Out Process Failed Her Grandson
Michigan Grandmother Says Opt Out Process Failed Her Grandson
A Michigan grandmother who also serves as the legal guardian of her 10 year old fourth grade grandson says she is raising concerns after attempting to opt him out of portions of a school curriculum involving puberty, health topics, and gender identity related discussions, saying she was not given enough information about what students would actually be taught.
Patrice, who lives in the Royal Oak area, said she first learned about the lessons after her grandson brought home a notice from school in his backpack.
“We got this pink piece of paper,” Patrice said during the interview. “There are seven sessions or seven lessons that were going to take place.”
If you support my work consider becoming a paid subscriber if you haven’t yet done so. I can’t keep doing this work without your help.
According to Patrice, the notice referenced lessons involving puberty, youth development, health topics, and issues related to gender identity for fourth grade students. However, she said the notice did not clearly explain the exact material students would be shown or taught during the lessons.
She said the paperwork informed parents and guardians they could opt a child out of the curriculum. Patrice said she wanted to review the materials first before deciding whether there were any portions of the lessons her grandson could attend.
“I wrote on it to say I would like to view the material first,” Patrice said. “Because maybe there are sessions that we will allow him to attend.”
Patrice said she felt frustrated because she believed the information provided to families was too vague.
“I have no idea what you’re going to talk about,” she said. “So I asked for that.”
During the interview, Patrice explained that she is not just the child’s grandmother, but also his guardian and the person responsible for making decisions involving his education and wellbeing.
Dave Bondy asked Patrice during the interview whether the curriculum was being labeled as health education or sex education.
“It’s like puberty years,” Patrice responded, later adding that the lessons were connected to health topics.
Patrice said the notice was sent home through students instead of being mailed directly or emailed to parents and guardians.
“They came in his backpack,” she said.
According to Patrice, after the form was completed, her grandson returned it to school the following day.
“He brought it home the next day and they said, no, you have to turn this in,” Patrice said. “So he says he put it in his bin at school.”
Patrice said she later became concerned because she believed the opt out request did not fully prevent the curriculum from moving forward involving her grandson.
“It seems like the schools and the parents, they’re not on the same page,” she said.